《云笈七签》Vol. 1

The Seven Slips from the Cloudy Bookcase (Yunji Qiqian) is a Daoist compendium compiled by Zhang Junfang during the Song dynasty. “Part One” is the first section of the work; its contents are listed below, volume by volume.

Volume One, “The Section on the Dao and De,” includes “A General Account of the Dao and De,” which outlines their principles and meaning.

Volume Two, “The Section on the Primordial Origin, the Empty Cavern, Creation, and the Cycles of Cosmic Change,” discusses the universe’s formation from its original state and the idea of cosmic cycles—periodic changes in the operation of the cosmos. Its contents include “Primordial Origin,” “Empty Cavern,” “Chaos,” “Cavernous Chaos,” and “Cosmic Cycles,” as well as the Scripture of the Most High Lord Lao Opening Heaven.

Volume Three, “The Section on the Origins of Daoism,” introduces Daoism’s origins, aims, and lineages. It includes “Preface to Daoism,” “The Origins of Daoism,” “The Fundamental Sources of the Three Caverns of Daoist Scripture and Teaching,” the Record of Zuo Yi’s Mixed Cavern and Eastern Obscurity, the Brief Record of Lingbao, the Preface to the Transformation and Transmission of Various Scriptures of the Three Treasures, and summaries of scriptures concerning the titles of the Celestial Worthies and Lord Lao, as well as the causes and conditions spanning successive cosmic cycles.

Volume Four, “The Section on the Transmission of Daoist Scriptures and Methods,” collects texts on the origins and transmission of Daoist scriptures. These include prefaces to the Shangqing and Lingbao scripture catalogs, An Account of the Shangqing Scriptures, A Discussion of the Three Sovereigns Scripture, A Record of the Successive Lineages of Daoism, and the Register of the Nine Grades of Covenant Regulations for Transmitting the Nine Perfected Scriptures of Xuandu. These works address the order of scriptural transmission, rules governing the conferral and reception of teachings, and covenant rites.

Volume Five, “The Section on the Succession of Scriptural Teachings,” lists Daoist lineages and associated Perfected Ones and masters. These include Yang Jun and Xu Jun of Maoshan; Master Lu, Master Tao, and Master Wang of Mount Lu; and Master Pan of Mount Zhong, Master Sima of Mount Wangwu, and Master Li of Maoshan.

Volume Six, “The Section on the Three Caverns of Scripture and Teaching,” introduces the Three Caverns—the three main divisions of Daoist scriptures and teachings—and their classification system, including grades, the Seven Sections, the Four Supplements, the Twelve Divisions, and the Thirty-Six Divisions.

Volume Seven continues with “The Texts of the Three Caverns of Scripture and Teaching.” Its contents include “A Discussion of the Methods of the Three Origins, Eight Assemblies, and Six Scripts,” cloud seals, the eight styles and six scripts and writings, talismanic characters, the Eight Manifestations, and the Key to Jade Characters. These texts chiefly concern Daoist writing, seal script, the forms of talismans and registers, and rules for writing them.

These are names used in Daoist scriptures for celestial texts, talismans and registers, and official documents, such as “Imperial Writings and Emperor’s Books,” “Heavenly Books,” “Dragon Chapters,” “Phoenix Script,” “Jade Tablets and Golden Books,” “Stone Characters,” “Jade Characters,” “Jade Registers,” “Cinnabar Writings and Ink Registers,” and “True Texts Refined by Fire.” Here, “register” refers to a Daoist document recording the names of divine beings, talismanic script, or the contents of an ordination register. Words such as “jade,” “gold,” and “fine jade” are often used to signify that these documents are precious and sacred.

Scroll Eight: Explanations of Scriptures in the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen)

This scroll contains explanations of scriptures in the Three Caverns, the Daoist system for classifying scriptures. These include the Scripture in Thirty-Nine Chapters; the Jade Register of the Eight Aspects of Golden Mystery, Grotto of Perfection, of the Lord of the Great Dao, Most High; the Jade Register of the Eight Aspects of Golden Mystery of the Most High Lord of the Great Dao, Sage of Highest Clarity; the Scripture of the Seven Turns and Seven Transformations, Dancing in Heaven, of the Divine Continent, Most High; the Scripture of the Divine Tiger’s Upper Talisman for Dispelling Demons and Wisdom; the Jade Register of the Eight Aspects of Great Abundance, Grotto of Mystery, of the Plain Spirit, Most High; the Wondrous Scripture of Great Abundance, Grotto of Mystery, of the Plain Spirit, Most High; the Feathered Scripture of Returning to the Origin and Flying Along the Nine Paths; the Original Register of Mount Tortoise, Great Subtlety of the Nine Spirits; the Hidden Book of the Great Red Elixir, Eight Endowments of Great Abundance; the Scripture of the Seven Sages’ Mysterious Record, Returning to Heaven’s Nine Heavens; the Secret Talisman of the Five Phases in the Rhymed Instructions of Plain Silk; the Scripture of the Three Diagrams of the Heavenly Pass and the Seven Stars’ Shifting Courses; the Jade Writings for Eliminating the Six Heavens and the Orthodox Law of the Three Heavens; the Scriptures of the Multitude of the Azure Essentials and Purple Books, Golden Root; the Scripture of the Essence of Stone, Golden Light, and the Hidden Register of Reflected Forms; and the Scripture of the Five Emperors’ Inner Truth and the Nine Red-Spotted Talismans, Most High.

Scroll Nine: Explanations of Scriptures in the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen)

This scroll continues with explanations of scriptures in the Three Caverns, including the Jade Writings of the Great Empyrean; the Yellow Book of the Great Tenuity; the Secret Characters in the Golden Book of the Most High; the Jade Register for Establishing the True Status of the Most High Sovereign’s People; the Upper Register of the Azure Origin, Most High; and the Jade Register of Great Simplicity, Most High.

This section lists the titles of Daoist scriptures included or explained in the Yunji Qiqian. They include works on Fulu (talismans and registers), jade registers, secret texts, scriptural instructions, and cultivation. The term “explained” indicates interpretation or exposition. “Dongzhen,” “Dongxuan,” and “Dongshen” are classification names for Daoist scriptures, each referring to a different scriptural tradition. Terms in the titles such as “Taishang,” “Yuqing,” “Yuanshi,” and “Laojun” are honorifics for Daoist deities or names associated with scriptural traditions.

The titles listed afterward, Scripture on the Original Arising of Laozi, the Supreme One, from Emptiness and Spontaneity and Scripture of the Inner Effulgence of the Yellow Court of Highest Clarity, are names of scriptures. “Volume Eleven,” “Volume Twelve,” and “Volume Thirteen,” along with “Scriptures of the Three Caverns” and “Scriptures of the Cavern,” indicate volume numbers and the categories to which the works belong. Scripture of the Inner Effulgence of the Yellow Court of Highest Clarity appears twice in the catalogue.

The Scripture of the Yellow Court’s Outer View (Taishang Huangting Waijing Jing)

Fascicle Thirteen

Scriptures of the Three Caverns

The Perfect Scripture of the Central Yellow of Great Clarity (with an appended explanatory note)

Fascicle Fourteen

Scriptures of the Three Caverns

The Scripture of the Yellow Court’s Dunjia Practice for Cultivating the Body

Fascicle Fifteen

Scriptures of the Three Caverns

Preface to the Scripture of the Yellow Emperor on the Hidden Talisman

The Scripture of the Yellow Emperor on the Hidden Talisman

The Scripture of the Celestial Mechanism

Fascicle Sixteen

Scriptures of the Three Caverns

The Scripture of the Lingbao Cavern Mystery on Spontaneous Nature and the Nine Heavens’ Generation of the Spirits

Two Hymns by the Perfected One of the Supreme Ultimate

Fascicle Seventeen

Scriptures of the Three Caverns

The Scripture on the Inner Observation of the Supreme Lord Lao

The Scripture on Settled Contemplation from the Cavern Mystery Lingbao Tradition

The Scripture on the Pure Serenity of Lord Lao’s Mind

Fascicle Eighteen

Scriptures of the Three Caverns

The Central Scripture of Laozi (Part One)

Fascicle Nineteen

Scriptures of the Three Caverns

The Central Scripture of Laozi (Part Two)

Fascicle Twenty

Scriptures of the Three Caverns

The Jade Scripture of the Supreme One’s Flight among the Nine Spirits

The Feathered Chapter

Stepping through the Celestial Net

The Method of Walking Backward

The Method of Reversed Walking

Fascicle Twenty-One: Heaven and Earth Section

A general account of Heaven

The Precious Register of the Three Realms

The Four Brahma Heavens, the Three Realms, and the Thirty-Two Heavens

Fascicle Twenty-Two: Heaven and Earth Section

A general account of the Five Directions of Heaven and Earth

The Thirty-Six Sounds of the Nine Earths

Formulas and methods for paying reverence

The Inner Sounds of the Thirty-Six Heavens of the Highest Ninefold Mystery

The Inner Inscription of the Thirty-Six Sounds of the Nine Earths of the Cavern Abyss

Methods for assessing the auspicious and inauspicious features of the terrain when climbing a mountain, staying there, or settling in

The Country of Heluoti in the East

The Country of Yishayu in the South

The Country of Niweilüna in the West

The Country of Xuntaluo in the North

The original essence above—the primordial vital energy between Heaven and Earth—is the realm of azure chaos and naturalness; the center is the boundless realm of supreme harmony and treasured truth.

Scroll Twenty-Three

Section on the Sun, Moon, and Stars

General Discussion of the Sun and Moon

Record of the Three Races:

Racing toward the Sun, racing toward the Moon, and racing toward the Stars: methods of cultivation for approaching the Sun, Moon, and stars through prescribed practices.

Diagram of the Supreme One’s Jade Dawn, Yuyi and Jieqi, for Racing toward the Sun and Moon

The Supreme One’s Yuyi Red Radiance Jade Text for Racing toward the Sun; the Jieqi Yellow Radiance Jade Inscription for Racing toward the Moon

Inscriptions carved on the stone door pivots of a stone chamber in the northern cave of Mount Emei

The taboo names and garments of the Five Emperors in the Sun, according to the Supreme One’s Yuyi

The taboo names and garments of the five imperial consorts in the Moon, according to the Supreme One’s Jieqi

The Sun and Moon formulas received by the Perfected One of Great Simplicity from the Great Emperor

The method for absorbing the rays of the Sun and Moon at the palaces of Great Direction: a practice of visualizing and drawing in the light of the Sun and Moon

The method for absorbing the Sun and Moon in the Supreme One’s Mysterious Truth Formula

The method of ingesting the mysterious root Qi on the third, fifth, seventh, and ninth days

The method of ingesting the Qi of the Sun and Moon

The Great One’s journey through the Sun and method for absorbing the Sun and Moon

The Sun and Moon formulas transmitted by the Great Emperor

The method for absorbing the rays of the Sun and Moon at the palaces of Great Direction

The method for absorbing the Sun and Moon in the Supreme One’s Mysterious Truth Formula

The method of ingesting the mysterious root Qi on the third, fifth, seventh, and ninth days

The method of ingesting the Qi of the Sun and Moon

The Great One’s journey through the Sun and method for absorbing the Sun and Moon

How to seek the Lady of Cinnabar Radiance in the Moon

The method of ingesting the Six Qi of the Sun and Moon

The Inner Method of the Golden Immortals

The method of visualizing the Sun and Moon

The method of sneezing toward the Sun to draw in its power

The Hidden Way of the Twin Radiances and Winged Forms: a practice associated with the twin radiances of the Sun and Moon and with invisibility

Eating bamboo shoots, with an appended discussion of goose jerky

Scroll Twenty-Four

Section on the Sun, Moon, and Stars

General Discussion of the Stars

The Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions

The duties and spheres of authority of the nine stars of the Northern Dipper

The Supreme One’s Record of Empty Constancy and Flying Steps

Scroll Twenty-Five

Section on the Sun, Moon, and Stars

The Secret Formula of the Purple Court of the Seven Primordials at the North Pole

The method of the Seven Youths Lying in the Dipper: a practice of visualizing seven youths resting within the Northern Dipper

The Supreme One’s Secret Way of Summoning the Five Celestial Luminaries into the Cavern Chamber to Become Flying Immortals

The method of ascending into the Dipper

The method of lying in the Dipper

The method of visualizing the Twenty-Four Stars

The method of Racing toward the Stars and Flying Up to the Five Planets

Scroll Twenty-Six

Section on the Ten Continents and Three Islands

The Ten Continents, with a preface

The Three Islands

Scroll Twenty

The method of the Seven Youths Lying in the Dipper: a practice of visualizing seven youths resting within the Northern Dipper

The Supreme One’s Secret Way of Summoning the Five Celestial Luminaries into the Cavern Chamber to Become Flying Immortals

The method of ascending into the Dipper

The method of lying in the Dipper

The method of visualizing the Twenty-Four Stars

Volume 26 of the Seven Slips from the Cloudy Satchel (Yunji Qiqian) includes methods for “racing among the stars and ascending through the Five Planets,” along with accounts of the Ten Continents and Three Islands. These are paradisiacal realms described in Daoist texts; the relevant sections are listed below.

Volume 27 introduces grotto-heavens and blessed lands. It includes the Illustrated Map of the Palaces of Heaven and Earth and its preface, and lists the Ten Great Grotto-Heavens, the Thirty-Six Lesser Grotto-Heavens, and the Seventy-Two Blessed Lands. In Daoist tradition, these names refer to mountain retreats and grottoes where immortal adepts dwell and cultivate the Way.

Volume 28 discusses the “Twenty-Eight Administrations,” lists the Twenty-Four Administrations and their preface, and introduces the Four Administrations established by the Celestial Master (Tianshi). “Administration” here refers to the organizational centers and sites of religious activity of the early Celestial Masters tradition.

Volumes 29 through 31 belong to the section “Receiving One’s Endowment and Mandate.” Their contents focus on people’s innate endowments, life, and methods of cultivation. The listed works include the Chapter on Receiving One’s Endowment, the Central Record of the Great Highest One’s Nine Elixirs for Transforming the Embryonic Essence, and the Method for Untying the Twelve Embryonic Knots, along with Daoist divinities such as the Emperor One and the Nine Perfected, and related cultivation formulas. Terms such as “embryonic essence” and “untie the embryonic knots” belong to Daoist concepts of internal cultivation and life.

Volumes 32, 33, and 34 belong to the section “Miscellaneous Cultivation and Preservation.” They collect material on nourishing one’s nature and prolonging life, prohibitions and taboos, warding off calamities, breathing practices for treating illness, Daoyin exercises and massage, preserving health, self-discipline, and restrictions on cultivating immortality. The book also lists methods such as Daoyin, Qi circulation, and guarding the One, as well as the Scripture of the Great Clarity on Daoyin and Nourishing Life, Mr. Ning’s Method of Daoyin and Nourishing Life, and the “Toad Qi-Circulation Method.” These works discuss caring for body and mind and extending life through regulated breathing, visualizing the spirit, bodily movement, and prudent observance in daily life.

This section of The Seven Slips from a Cloudy Satchel (Yunji Qiqian) lists works on cultivation, health preservation, fasting, and precepts. These include breathing practices modeled on animals such as tortoises and turtles, methods for absorbing the moon’s vital essence, and the daoyin exercises of Peng Zu and Wang Ziqiao. Daoyin is a traditional method of caring for the body through breathing and physical movements.

The sections that follow discuss daoyin, nourishing the body through spirit and vital energy, preserving health and prolonging life, and miscellaneous cultivation practices. They cover tonics, prohibitions, methods of health preservation, transformation of the body, sitting in oblivion, fetal breathing, and consuming the vital energy of Zixiao. The section on fasting describes its types, dates, and rituals; the section on precepts lists the Ten Precepts, Five Precepts, Ten Virtues and Ten Evils, and other Daoist rules.

The “Admonitions on Precepts” appears in fascicle forty and belongs to the “Section on Expounding the Precepts.” This section contains texts concerning rules of discipline, including explanations of the precepts, accounts of a hundred illnesses, praise of a hundred medicines, the Ten Precepts for Beginning Practitioners, the Pure Precepts, the Regulations and Precepts for the Maidens of the Central Palace in the Great Dark Capital, the Precepts of the Scripture of the Forty-Four Methods of the Supreme One’s Yellow Register, the Precepts of the Golden Book of Immortal Records, the Great Cavern Precepts of Shangqing, the Lingbao Precepts, and the text on receiving and observing the Eight Precepts and undertaking the fast. Here, “precepts” refers to the rules that practitioners of the Dao are expected to follow. “Receiving and observing the Eight Precepts and undertaking the fast” means accepting and keeping eight precepts and observing ritual fasting.

Fascicle forty-one belongs to the “Section on Miscellaneous Methods” and contains practices such as bathing and paying homage. “Seven Bathing Practices That Bring Seven Blessings” describes seven bathing practices and the seven kinds of blessings they bring. “Auspicious Days for Bathing” lists suitable days for bathing; “Combing and Bathing” concerns combing the hair and washing the body; and “Removing Impurity” refers to a ritual or method for cleansing defilement. The section on paying homage includes methods for making vows and seeking immortality, paying homage to the celestial realms, and venerating various immortals and perfected beings. “Paying Homage to the Utmost” refers to paying homage to the most exalted place in the celestial realms. “Lord Yuchen,” “Lord Qing Tong,” and “the Three Primordial Lords of Great Simplicity,” among others, are names of divine perfected beings in Daoist belief. “Hidden Homage” refers to a form of paying homage practiced as part of concealed cultivation.

Fascicles forty-two, forty-three, and forty-four all belong to the “Section on Visualization.” This section describes cultivation through visualizing deities, palaces, or inner scenes within one’s own body. Fascicle forty-two lists methods for visualizing the thirty-nine perfected deities in the Scripture of the Great Cavern. Fascicle forty-three includes methods for visualizing the Three Caverns; eighteen diagrams for visualizing Lord Lao; practices involving the Nine Palaces and their Five Spirits; and methods for visualizing such divine perfected beings as Yuan Cheng, the August Elder, the Emperor-Lord, the Mysterious One Laozi, and the Director of Destinies. Fascicle forty-four contains the Hidden Book of the Great Cinnabar of the Great One Emperor-Lord, along with methods for stabilizing the spirits and nourishing life, inner visualization of flying immortals, the Plain Words of the Three Nines, and visualization of the Emperor-Lord, the Mysterious One Laozi, and the Director of Destinies. It also lists the True Formula of Jade Essence and Plain Words of the Three Nines, visualization from the Purple Book of the Primordial Father and Mysterious Mother, and material concerning the Nine-Heavens True Maiden. Visualization is a method of inner Daoist cultivation that usually involves focusing, according to scriptural instructions and formulas, on deities or inner scenes within the body.

Fascicles forty-five and forty-six belong to the “Section on Secret Essentials and Methods of Formulae.” Both contain the “Essentials for Cultivating the True,” a text of key principles for cultivating the Dao.

Fascicle forty-seven continues the collection of secret essentials and methods of formulae. It includes incantations for settling the hun and po souls, for putting on clothes, for combing the hair, and for washing the hands and face, as well as a blessing for ringing in the ears. An incantation or blessing is a formula recited during a ritual, often as part of practices associated with daily routines, cleansing the body, or calming the spirits.

Methods for Examining Whether Ringing in the Ears Is Auspicious or Inauspicious

A Chant Before Eating

Prayers for Daoist Priests’ Three Daily Meals

How to Dispel Inauspicious Omens Encountered During Fasting

How to Deal with a Corpse Encountered While Traveling the Dao

Methods from the Upper Scripture for Averting Misfortune After a Daoist Priest Encounters a Corpse

A Method for Refining and Purifying Corpse Impurity with Spells

The Essentials of Practitioners’ Spellwork

A Demon-Dispelling Spell Recited by Daoist Priests When Tested by Celestial Demons—Obstacles believed to disturb body and mind during cultivation

How the Jade Emperor’s Guardian Spirits Protect and Drive Away Ghosts

Methods for Treating Acute Illness

What to Do When the Tongue Is Stiff and the Throat Is Blocked

The Inner Cultivation Method of the Golden Immortal

Fascicle Forty-Eight

Section on Secret Essentials and Methods (Keys to Cultivation)

An Account of the Origins of the Method of the Lord Lao’s Luminous Illumination (with an Oath to Preserve the Method)

The Luminous Illumination Method

A Spell for Shining with Precious Light to Detect and Drive Away Ghosts

Methods for Treating Acute Illness

What to Do When the Tongue Is Stiff and the Throat Is Blocked

The Inner Cultivation Method of the Golden Immortal

Fascicle Forty-Eight

Section on Secret Essentials and Methods (Keys to Cultivation)

An Account of the Origins of the Method of the Lord Lao’s Luminous Illumination (with an Oath to Preserve the Method)

The Luminous Illumination Method

The Precious Illumination Method

The Rubbing Illumination Method

The Method of Brushing the Child

The Spirit Pillow Method (with preface)

The Spirit Staff Method

The Supreme Method of the Sovereign Lord’s Luminous Lamp: Inner Contemplation and Seeking Immortality

A Method of Cultivation in Accordance with the Laws of the Celestial Court

A Method of Consuming Clouds and Absorbing Their Qi

Fascicle Forty-Nine

Section on Secret Essentials and Methods (Three Ones: Cultivation of the Original Spirits Within the Body)

Guarding the One (Preserving the True Spirit Within Body and Mind)

The Three Ones Formula

The Three Ones Formula in the Comprehensive Treatise on the Mysterious Gate (with account)

The Oral Formula of the Scripture of the True One of the Five Dippers and Three Primordials, Sovereign Lord of the Golden Palace

Scriptural Instructions for Guarding the True One of the Five Dippers

Fascicle Fifty

Section on Secret Essentials and Methods (Three Ones)

The Three Ones and Nine Palaces Method

The Jade Formula Naming the Inner Spirit, the Female One, of the Four Palaces

The Formula of the Scripture of the True One of the Three Primordials, Sovereign Lord of the Golden Palace

Fascicle Fifty-One

Section on Secret Essentials and Methods (Practical Essentials of Cultivation)

The Registers of the Eight Ways of Destiny

Secret Words of the Eight Ways

The Supreme One’s Secret Talisman of Qu Su and the Five Phases

Jade Pendants and Golden Chimes (with material concerning the Yellow-Robed Child)

Flowing-Gold Fire Bells (with the Great Prayer for Displaying Might)

The Five-Bell Supreme Talisman for Ascending into the Void and Preserving Immortality

Fascicle Fifty-Two

Section on Miscellaneous Essentials, Diagrams, and Methods

The Formula for Practicing the Nine Perfected

The Formula for Practicing Ascending to the Mysterious

The Formula for Practicing the Chamber of the Fangzhu Grotto

The Formula for Practicing the Five Spirits

The Two Supreme Talismans

Volume Fifty-Two belongs to the “Illustrated Methods and Instructions on Miscellaneous Essentials” section. It contains practical and cultivation instructions concerning the Nine Zhen, Shengxuan, the Fangzhu Dongfang, the Five Spirits, the Twenty-Four Spirits, the Five Celestial Bodies, and Returning to the Origin, along with miscellaneous cultivation methods of the Five Emperors and the “Riding the Dragon” diagram.

Volume Fifty-Three belongs to the “Secret Essentials and Instructions on Miscellaneous Methods” section. It includes The Eight Methods of the Supreme One’s Hidden Book of the Eight Radiances and Flying Scripture (with preface), The Eight Techniques of the Supreme One’s Elixir Radiance, the Way of the Essence, and Hidden Earth, The Supreme Method of Inner Contemplation in the Purple Reflections of the Jade Rosy Clouds of the Great Clarity, The Method of Preserving the Mysterious White, and The Method of the Three Plain Clouds.

Volume Fifty-Four belongs to the “Hun and Shen” section. It discusses the hun and po souls and related cultivation methods, including gathering and restraining the Three Hun, controlling the Seven Po, contemplating the Three Hun in the presence of the sun, paying homage to the Nine Heavens, seeking immortality, the essence of the hun, and the Shangqing method of stepping through the Seven Stars. Here, “preserving” or “contemplating” means using the mind’s intent to visualize deities or gods within the body.

Volume Fifty-Five also belongs to the “Hun and Shen” section. It contains methods for contemplating spirits, preserving the body’s spirits, receiving the celestial hun at birth, cultivating spirit and essence, and entering a room to contemplate the Red Child. In this kind of Daoist cultivation, the “Red Child” usually refers to a spirit within the body or to a symbolic inner life.

Volume Fifty-Six belongs to the “Qi Methods of Various Traditions” section. It contains Treatise on Original Qi (with preface), which discusses original Qi and related methods for cultivating Qi.

Volume Fifty-Seven belongs to the “Qi Methods of Various Traditions” section. It contains Treatise on the Essentials of Absorbing Qi (with preface) and Method for Contemplating the Red Child in a Room, concerning the absorption of Qi and contemplative cultivation.

Volume Fifty-Eight belongs to the “Qi Methods of Various Traditions” section. It includes Treatise on the Subtleties of Embryonic Breathing, The Mao Mountain Adept’s Instructions for Absorbing Inner Qi, Essential Instructions on the Roots of Embryonic Breathing, Miscellaneous Instructions on Embryonic Breathing, The Perfected Yin’s Art of Absorbing Original Qi, Method for Absorbing Original Qi, and Oral Instructions on Embryonic Breathing (with preface). These texts mainly discuss cultivation methods involving embryonic breathing, inner Qi, and absorbing original Qi. “Embryonic breathing” is a Daoist internal cultivation term for regulating the breath and gathering the spirit.

Volume Fifty-Nine belongs to the “Qi Methods of Various Traditions” section. It contains An Outline of Lord Yanling’s Cultivation, Preface to the Scripture of Master Chisong on Absorbing Qi, The Scripture on the Immortals’ Practice of Fasting and Absorbing Qi, The Great Nonbeing Master’s Method for Absorbing Qi, Mozi’s Method for Holding and Circulating the Breath, The Great Clarity Method for Absorbing Qi, Transmitted Orally by Elder Wang, The Dharma Master Tanluan’s Method for Absorbing Qi, The Perfected Inner Marvelous Method by Which the Great Master Bodhidharma Abided in the World and Preserved His Form, and Master Xiang’s Method for Feeding on Qi. The contents concern cultivation methods such as absorbing, circulating, and holding the breath, as well as fasting.

These are the contents of the sections in Qizhen Yunji concerning breath cultivation, the circulation of Qi (vital energy), and Golden Elixir (Jindan) arts.

The first half lists various methods for cultivating breath and instructions for working with Qi. Many titles refer to the person who transmitted or practiced the method, such as Master Zhang Guo, Celestial Master Shen, Perfected Wang, Master Daweiyi, the recluse Wang Shuōshan, and Li of Mount Song. “Cultivating breath” refers to a Daoist practice of drawing in and using Qi through methods such as regulating the breath and visualization. Titles such as “Essential Instructions for Cultivating Breath,” “New Instructions,” and “Method for Cultivating Breath in Accordance with the Seasons” refer respectively to key guidelines, a new method, and a method practiced according to the seasons.

Volumes 60 through 62 remain part of the “Section on Qi Methods from Various Traditions,” collecting scriptures and instructions on cultivating breath from different sources, including The Scripture on Cultivating Breath from the Jade Cabinet of Mount Zhong, Methods for Cultivating Inner Original Qi by Master Huanzhen, and The Scripture on Embryonic Breathing. “Embryonic breathing” is a Daoist term for a state of deep, subtle respiration. The section also includes methods for circulating Qi, gathering Shen (spirit), cultivating the numinous Qi of the Five Directions, cultivating the Three Qi, and cultivating breath according to the months. It further explains and discusses breathing, bodily postures, obstructions in the diaphragm, and changes in the flow of Qi in the intestines. An account accompanies the “Method for Cultivating Qi from the Scripture of the Five Kitchens,” while “Distinguishing the Names of Various Invoked Spirits” examines different names used when calling upon spirits.

Volume 63 turns to the “Section on the Golden Elixir,” listing works related to Golden Elixir practice. These include discussions of terms such as gold, tiger, lead, and mercury; instructions on making the crucible, managing the fire, and combining metals; and procedures carried out according to celestial signs and talismanic methods. Here, “Golden Elixir” refers to the elixir practices of the Daoist cultivation tradition. Terms such as “crucible” and “fire” in the titles refer to implements and operations used in alchemy.

Volume 64 is the “Section of Golden Elixir Instructions,” containing works on elixir practice, including The Scripture on the Elixir Spoken by the Jade Maiden of Golden Flower and Record of Mysterious Explanations.

Volumes 65 through 72 of The Seven Slips from a Cloudy Satchel (Yunji Qiqian) mainly contain chapters on Golden Elixir and Neidan cultivation. Their subjects include identifying the mineral substances used in alchemy, removing toxins from ingredients, alchemical methods and rituals, and the names, effects, and varying preparation times of elixirs. Volume 65 lists The Scripture of the Divine Elixir of Golden Liquid from the Great Clarity (Taiqing Jinye Shendan Jing) and describes methods for making Six-in-One mud, combining the ingredients, and performing sacrificial and initiation rites. “Sacrificial and initiation rites” refers to the offerings and transmission ceremonies conducted during alchemical practice.

Volume 66 contains discussions and essential instructions on the Dao of the Elixir, including Five Chapters on the Essentials of the Elixir Discourse, with Inner Illumination (Danlun Juezhi Xin Zhao Wupian), On the Golden Elixir (Jindan Lun), and The Central Principles of the Great Restoration Elixir (Dahuandan Zongzhi). Volume 67 introduces the prefaces, names, and methods for preparing various divine elixirs, such as the Nine Cauldron Divine Elixir, the Nine-Cycle Elixir, the Nine-Luminescence Elixir, the Five-Spirit Elixir, the Minshan Elixir, the Five-Stage Elixir, and the Golden Liquid method. Volume 68 lists formulae and instructions for Purple Syrup, the Five-Pearl Birth-Giving Divine Elixir, the Nine-Restoration Golden Elixir, and other preparations. Volume 69 is devoted to the Seven-Return Elixir of Spiritual Sand.

Volume 70 turns to Neidan methods, including The Golden Key to the Inner Image of the Returning Elixir (Huandan Neixiang Jinyao), discussions of terms such as “black lead, water tiger” and “red lead, fire dragon,” and three texts titled The Art of Returning Gold (Huanjin Shu). Here, Neidan means a practice centered on Jing, Qi, and Shen within the human body and their transformations. Terms such as “black lead” and “red lead” belong to the technical language of alchemy and often use metals and furnace fire to describe internal cultivation. Volume 71 contains Essential Instructions from the Great Clarity Elixir Scripture (Taiqing Danjing Yaojue), while Volume 72 identifies material related to Neidan.

The Neidan (internal alchemy) section of the Seven Lots from the Cloudy Bookcase (Yunji Qiqian) includes Secret Diagrams for the Covenant of the Great Restoration Elixir and its preface, Notes on Verifications from Practicing the Elixir through the Wondrous Way of the True Origin, as well as such works as Ancient Songs of the Dragon and Tiger, Hidden Instructions on the Subtle Connection between the Golden Elixir and Gold and Jade, Instructions for Cautious Preservation of the Yin Elixir, The Mirror of the Great Restoration, and the preface to The Central Scripture of the Divine Elixir of Great Clarity.

Volume 73 also belongs to the Neidan section. It lists Ancient Songs of the Dragon and Tiger, Hidden Instructions on the Subtle Connection between the Golden Elixir and Gold and Jade, Instructions for Cautious Preservation of the Yin Elixir, The Mirror of the Great Restoration, and Preface to the Central Scripture of the Divine Elixir of Great Clarity.

Volume 74 is in the Prescriptions and Medicines section. It contains various recipes for elixir medicines and methods of preparation, including a recipe for green essence rice, a method for boiling the five kinds of stone crystal, the eight chapters of the Jade Scripture of the Supreme One for Use at One’s Elbow, The Supreme Recipe of the Great One for Partaking of Rose Petals and Cloud Dust to Become an Immortal and its explanatory introduction, and A Record of Reliable Accounts of the Recipe for the Numinous Flight Powder. It also includes a method for preparing mica.

Volume 75 belongs to the Prescriptions and Medicines section and consists of the preface to Secret Instructions for Refining and Taking Mica to Become an Immortal.

Volume 76 contains various elixir recipes and preparation methods, such as The Numinous Treasure Recipe for the Elixir of Restoring the Soul and its preface; the Golden Millet Seed recipe for refining cinnabar; methods for cultivating and preparing the Feathered Transformation River Cart and the Divine Chamber River Cart; the method for refining lead through nine cycles; the Golden Elixir method; the method for subduing the fire of Northern Court; and the method for transforming Geng powder. The “Section on Subduing Medicines” also lists methods for subduing fire to make medicines, using mercury to produce Geng substances, and making a four-sided cabinet with cinnabar. Here, “subduing fire” means treating medicines by a specific method so that, during refinement, they reach the stated condition.

Volume 77 also belongs to the Prescriptions and Medicines section. It contains various elixir and powder recipes and methods for nourishing life, including the method for the Great Cavern Western Florescence Jade Hall Immortal Mother Golden Elixir; seventy-four miraculous pills for stabilizing the hun-soul and securing the po-soul, enabling flight; the Five Phases, Seven Ingredients Pill transmitted by the Perfected of South Mountain, Zheng Piyun; the Four Stabilizing Pills from the Central Scripture of the Nine Perfected; the Yellow Emperor’s recipe for Four-Fan Powder; the Queen Mother’s recipe for Four Attendant Maidens Powder; A Record of Mysterious Frost in the Palm by the Imperial Daughter; a recipe for Firefly Pills; the Yellow Emperor’s transmitted immortal recipe of four ingredients made with yellow light; the Perfected One’s recipe for Lotus Blossoms to Preserve Youth; Lord Lao’s recipe for Longevity-Enhancing Powder; and methods of grain avoidance and a recipe for Great Clarity Flying Powder transmitted by the Old Mother of Mount Li and Master Wen Shi.

The contents of the Seven Slips from a Cloudy Satchel (Yunji Qiqian) list a range of immortal prescriptions, cultivation methods, and Daoist texts and diagrams. These include the record of the Palm of the Mysterious Frost of the Imperial Daughter, a prescription for firefly pills, an immortal prescription obtained by the Yellow Emperor, formulas for prolonging life, methods of fasting, techniques for flying as an immortal, and alchemical arts.

Volume 78 is the “Section on Prescriptions and Medicines.” It contains elixir formulas for nourishing the spirit and preserving life, harmonizing the body and temperament, and treating illness, as well as a method for making iron-derived powder.

Volumes 79 and 80 form the “Section on Talismans and Diagrams.” They contain the True Forms of the Five Sacred Peaks, their origins and methods of use, along with diagrams and talismans associated with the Numinous Treasure of the Cavern of Mystery.

Volumes 81 through 83 form the “Section on the Gengshen Day.” They discuss Gengshen cultivation, formulas for visualizing young attendants to subdue the Mysterious Spirits, methods for controlling the six desires, and accounts of the Three Corpses and the Three Corpse Worms, including ways to deal with them. They also list instructions for using breath cultivation to eliminate the three worms, examining the Three Corpses, and using invocations to subdue the corpse worms.

The method transmitted by the Purple Tenuity Palace for the Most High Lord Lao to cut away the Three Corpse spirits—three harmful spiritual entities said in Daoism to reside within the body.

The Perfected One of Great Emptiness’s method for eliminating the Three Corpse spirits.

A method for removing the Three Corpse spirits by keeping the precepts of the Dao in mind.

A method for removing corpse worms—impure, harmful insects said to dwell within the body—using the Five Phases Purple Script talisman technique. Three methods in all.

A method for removing the Three Corpse spirits by visualizing red Qi rising from the heart.

Volume Eighty-Four: The Section on Corpse Liberation (corpse liberation is a Daoist method by which a practitioner’s remains transform and the spirit ascends to immortality)

An exposition of the Perfected One of Taiji’s Scripture on the Stone Essence and Golden Radiance, Concealing the Forms of the Landscape.

An explanation of the method of the Stone Essence and Golden Radiance, Concealing the Forms of the Landscape.

An account of corpse liberation.

A method of making a precious sword to accomplish corpse liberation, and a method for removing worms: three methods in all.

A method for removing the Three Corpse spirits by visualizing red Qi rising from the heart.

Volume Eighty-Four: The Section on Corpse Liberation

An exposition of the Perfected One of Taiji’s Scripture on the Stone Essence and Golden Radiance, Concealing the Forms of the Landscape.

An explanation of the method of the Stone Essence and Golden Radiance, Concealing the Forms of the Landscape.

An account of corpse liberation.

A method of making a precious sword to accomplish corpse liberation.

The stages, accounts, and rules of corpse liberation.

The Perfected One of Taiji’s admonitions.

A method of accomplishing corpse liberation with a spirit staff.

Water liberation (accomplishing corpse liberation through water), recorded here in three cases.

Volume Eighty-Five: The Section on Corpse Liberation

A preface to the Perfected One of Taiji’s Upper Scripture of the Flying Immortal’s Precious Sword.

A preface to the Ten-Transformation Purple Gold Elixir, transmitted by the Rong and Hu peoples to Shun.

The Great One Guarding the Corpse.

The Perfected One of the Bright Firmament.

The Talisman of Dark Generation from the Great Mystery.

The Perfected One of Taiji’s Bequeathed Belt Powder.

The Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan.

Ning Feng (fire liberation, accomplishing corpse liberation through fire).

The Jade Master.

Wang Ziqiao.

Qingping Ji.

Sima Jizhu.

Bao Shuyang.

Xu Wan.

Dong Zhongjun.

Long Shu.

Wang Fangping.

Luan Ba (weapon liberation, accomplishing corpse liberation through weapons or warfare).

The female immortal Zhao Sutai.

The wife of the female immortal Cheng Weizhi.

Liu Xinhua.

Zhang Xuanbin.

Wang Jia (weapon liberation).

The method of corpse liberation transmitted by Lord Yin to Bao Jing.

Zhe Xiang.

Wu Meng.

Zuo Ci.

Wang Yan.

The Elder Wang.

Volume Eighty-Six: The Section on Corpse Liberation

Oral instructions from the Great Emperor Lord of Dongsheng for guarding and regulating the five viscera.

Lunar Yin form-refinement (refining the body with the aid of lunar Yin Qi).

Refining the corpse through the cleansing action of water and fire.

Yin-Yang Six

Wu Meng.

Zuo Ci.

Wang Yan.

The Elder Wang.

Volume Eighty-Six: The Section on Corpse Liberation

Oral instructions from the Great Emperor Lord of Dongsheng for guarding and regulating the five viscera.

Lunar Yin form-refinement.

Refining the corpse through the cleansing action of water and fire.

The method of refining the body through Yin-Yang and the Six Jia: a cultivation method that transforms and refines the body by applying Yin-Yang principles and the Six Jia.

Cultivating the Central Way of the Nine Perfected Ones: practicing the Way of the Nine Perfected Ones, a path of cultivation that takes them as its guides.

Transforming the body and cleansing the radiance: changing the body and purifying the mind and body until they are clear and bright.

The Master Below Ground, Master Ning, Ling Shouguang, Zhao Chengzi, Xu Yufu, Zhang Lu, Xu Daoyu (a female adept), Fan Chai, and Qiao Shun: names of immortal Perfected Ones or associated figures. “Female adept” refers to a woman who practices the Dao.

Volume 87, Essentials on the Perfected Ones: this volume belongs to the “Essentials on the Perfected Ones” category and contains the Essentials of the Many Scriptures of the Great Clarity Immortals.

Volume 88, Essential Instructions from the Registers of Immortals: this volume belongs to the “Essential Instructions from the Registers of Immortals” category and contains The Essentials of the Dao’s Generation, Instructions on Nourishing Life and Resolving Doubts, and The Song of the Lower Origin.

Volume 89, Discourses of the Perfected Ones: this volume belongs to the “Discourses of the Perfected Ones” category and contains The Scripture’s Admonitions.

Volume 90, Essentials of the Seven Sections’ Discourses: this volume belongs to the “Essentials of the Seven Sections’ Discourses” category and contains Linked Pearls, comprising sixty-five poems.

Volume 91, Essential Notes on Names and Numbers in the Seven Sections: this volume belongs to the “Essential Notes on Names and Numbers in the Seven Sections” category and contains The Nine Observances, in nine chapters, as well as The Thirteen Emptinesses, The Seven Retributions, and The Seven Injuries.

Volume 92, Essential Notes on Discourses in the Registers of Immortals: this volume belongs to the “Essential Notes on Discourses in the Registers of Immortals” category and contains Recorded Discourses of the Many Perfected Ones.

Volume 93, Essential Notes on Discourses in the Registers of Immortals: this volume contains On How Immortality Can Be Learned, On the Nature of the Dao, On the Three Aspects, On the True Aspect, and On Yin-Yang and the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water).

Volume 94, Essential Notes on Discourses in the Registers of Immortals: this volume contains Treatise on Sitting in Forgetfulness, with a preface, in seven chapters. “Sitting in forgetfulness” is a method of cultivation that gathers the spirit through quiet sitting and letting go of external things.

Volume 95, Essential Notes on Discourses in the Registers of Immortals: this volume contains The Illusory Nature of Dharma, The Causes and Conditions of the Nature of the Dao, The Innate Nature’s Pure Goodness, The Methods of Action and Non-Action, Contemplating the Characteristics of the Four Elements, The Afflictions of the Material Body, The Parable of the Raft, On Illness, Two Hindrances to Seeking the Dao, The Parable of the Dream’s Illusoriness, The Parable of Scattering Flowers, On Seeds, True and False, and The Dharma of Emptiness.

Volume 96, Eulogies: this volume contains eulogistic poems, including a poem by the Celestial Lord of Taiwei praising the Wondrous Scripture of Great Being.

One ode praising the Wondrous Scripture of Great Being, by the Great Thearch.

One ode from the Scripture of Lord Lao’s Original Birth.

One ode from the Supreme Scripture of Wisdom and Returning to the Mysterious.

One ode praising the Supreme Scripture of Wisdom.

One ode from the Scripture of the Great Precepts of Original Vows.

The Jade Emperor transmitted the thirty-nine chapters of the Great Cavern of the Living and two pieces, including the Song of Ascending the Dragon Terrace.

Three odes from the Scripture of Purple Deliverance and Blazing Radiance, the Spirit’s Transformation, transmitted by the Queen Mother of the West.

One ode to the Perfected One of the Mysterious One Above, the Supreme One, Naturally One with the Dao of Numinous Treasure.

One ode to the Supreme One’s Broad Propagation of the Dao.

Nine chapters of Donghua from the Fangzhu Palace, and two pieces, including the Song of Ascending the Dragon Terrace.

Three odes from the Scripture of Purple Deliverance and Blazing Radiance, the Spirit’s Transformation, transmitted by the Queen Mother of the West.

One ode to the Perfected One of the Mysterious One Above, the Supreme One, Naturally One with the Dao of Numinous Treasure.

One ode to the Supreme One’s Broad Propagation of the Dao.

One song by the Spirit Consort of the Upper Chamber of Donghua at Fangzhu Palace.

One song often sung by the Great Lord of the Azure Lad.

One song often sung by the Perfected One of the Great Void.

One song often sung by the Perfected One of the Western City, Lord Wang.

One song often sung by the Perfected One of Lesser Being, Lord Wang.

Guo Sichao often went boating on the pond in a small skiff, tapping its gunwale and singing four songs.

The Immortal Lord Who Preserves Life told Xu Huya and Du Guangping that he often enjoyed singing one particular song.

When the Queen Mother of the West hosted Emperor Wu of Han, the Lady of the Primordial Beginning played a piece titled “Cloud Grove’s Chime: A Song for Walking in Emptiness.”

The Queen Mother of the West then asked her attendant Tian Sifei to sing a song in reply.

A song the Queen Mother gave to Lady Wei, accompanied by a preface.

Shuang Lizhu played a Cloud Chime melody, then sang a song in reply.

One piece titled “The High Immortal Longs to Roam the Cavern of Numinous Mystery,” accompanied by a preface.

Five songs sung by four Perfected Ones when they descended to Lady Wei’s residence, accompanied by a preface.

One song sung by the Azure Lad of Fangzhu.

Next comes a song sung by the Divine King of Fusang.

Next come two songs sung by the Perfected One of Clear Emptiness.

One piece titled “The Sorrows of the Human World,” accompanied by a preface.

One piece titled “Ballad of Ba,” accompanied by a preface.

In a dream, the Perfected One Yang Xi saw the Immortal Duke of Penglai, Luo Guangxiu, summon four people, each of whom composed one poem.

One poem first composed by Shi Anqing.

Continuation of the poem composed by Zhang Youshi (with preface).

The “Ballad of Ba” (with preface).

The Perfected Yang Xi dreamed of the Immortal Lord of Penglai, Luo Guangxiu. The Lord summoned four people, each of whom composed a poem.

Shi Anqing was the first to compose a poem.

Next, Zhang Youshi composed a poem.

Next, Xu Yufu composed a poem.

Next, Ding Weining composed a poem.

A letter from King Fuchai of Wu (with preface).

Three poems by Master Xin Xuanzi (with preface).

Scroll 97

Hymns and Eulogies: Songs and Poems.

A song by Lady Zuo of the Mysterious Clarity of Taiwei (with preface).

One “Song of the Numinous Phoenix” (with preface).

One “Song of the Stone Drum” by the female immortal Zhang Liying (with preface).

One children’s rhyme from the early Han dynasty (with preface).

Three poems that E’lü Hua gave to Yang Quan (with preface).

Two poems that Lady An of Jiuhua gave to Yang Siming (with preface).

Four poems by Lady Wang, the Central Marquis (with preface).

Three poems by Lady Li of Zhaoling, Fangzhang Terrace (with preface).

Three poems that Lady Wang of the Southern Pole taught to Yang Xi (with preface).

Seventeen poems by Lady Wang of Ziwei (with preface).

Three poems by Lady of Scroll 90 (with preface).

Three poems that Lady Wang of the Southern Pole taught to Yang Xi (with preface).

Seventeen poems by Lady Wang of Ziwei (with preface).

Scroll 98

Hymns and Eulogies: Poems and Eulogies.

Two poems that Lady Taizhen gave to Ma Mingsheng (with preface).

Twenty-six poems that Lady Youying of Yunlin gave to the Perfected Yang and the Senior Historian Xu (with preface).

Six eulogies on the Scripture of Wisdom by the Perfected One of the Supreme Ultimate.

Scroll 99

Hymns and Eulogies: Poems and Eulogies.

One portrait eulogy and two poems on Wu Zilai (with preface).

One poem that an immortal gave to Bai Yongnian (with preface).

One poem by the immortal attendant of Li Gongzuo (with preface).

Two poems by Shu Haoran, who composed “Words on a Floating Void Boat” and gave them to Luan Hunzhi (with preface).

Five “Words of Numinous Resonance” (with preface).

Five “Songs of Walking in the Void” by the assembled immortals. Songs of Walking in the Void are poems chanted in Daoist Zhaijiao purification rituals.

One frequently recited by the Celestial Lord Azure Youth.

A poem written by the Lady of Nanyue to Senior Official Xu.

“Poem” (with preface).

Two poems on expressing noble spirit, sailing through the void, and taking leave of Luan Hun (with preface).

Five “Songs of Spiritual Resonance” (with preface).

Five “Songs of the Immortals Walking Through the Void.” “Walking Through the Void” is a form of chanting accompanied by walking in Daoist liturgy.

A poem often chanted by the Celestial Lord of the Azure Lad.

A poem composed by the Lady of Nanyue.

Another poem composed by the Lady of Nanyue.

Volume 100: Biographies and Records, Records section.

The Preface to the Record of the Primordial Heaven, composed by Emperor Zhenzong of the Song.

The Basic Record of Xuanyuan.

Volume 101: Biographies and Records, Records section.

The Record of the Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning.

The Record of the Lord of the Dao, the Most High.

The Record of the High Sage of Shangqing, the Most High Jade Dawn Lord of the Great Dao.

The Record of the Three Heavenly Lords.

The Record of the Azure Spirit Primordial Elder Lord.

The Record of the Vermilion Spirit True Elder Lord.

The Record of the Yellow Elder Lord of the Center.

The Record of the August Elder Lord of the Bright Spirit of the Golden Gate.

The Record of the Mysterious Elder Lord of the Five Spirits.

Volume 102: Biographies and Records, Records section.

The Sacred Record of the Emperor of Primordial Chaos.

The Record of the Lord, Celestial Emperor of Great Subtlety.

The Record of the Lord Emperor of Azure Essentials.

The Record of the Master of All Perfection and Keeper of the Registers.

The Record of the Elder Lord of Primordial Spirit and Jade Treasure of the Central Heaven.

The Record of the Vermilion Radiance Heavenly Emperor.

The Record of the Venerable Deity of the Southern Pole.

The Record of the Lord, Celestial Emperor of the First Volume.

The Record of the Lord Emperor of Azure Essentials.

The Record of the Master of All Perfection and Keeper of the Registers.

The Record of the Elder Lord of Primordial Spirit and Jade Treasure of the Central Heaven.

The Record of the Vermilion Radiance Heavenly Emperor.

The Record of the Venerable Deity of the Southern Pole.

Volume 103: Biographies and Records, Biographies section.

The Preface to the Biography of the True Lord Who Assists the Sage and Protects De, composed by Emperor Zhenzong of the Song.

The Biography of the True Lord Who Assists the Sage and Protects De.

The Memorial Presenting the Account of the True Lord Who Assists the Sage and Protects De.

The Reply.

Volume 104: Biographies and Records, Biographies section.

The Biography of Lord Su, Upper Minister of Xuanzhou.

The Biography of the Perfected of Great Harmony (with an appendix on the deeds of Master Yuanyang).

The Biography of the Perfected of the Supreme Ultimate.

The Biography of the Perfected of the Great Clarity.

The Biography of the Perfected of the Great Origin, Upper Minister of the Eastern Peak and Lord of Destiny.

Volume 105: Biographies and Records, Biographies section.

The Biography of the Perfected of Clear Spirit, Lord Pei.

Volume 106: Biographies and Records, Biographies section.

The Inner Biography of the Perfected of Clear Emptiness, Lord Wang.

The Inner Biography of the Perfected of Purple Yang, Lord Zhou.

Biography of Perfected Ma Mingsheng

Biography of Lord Yin (with Lord Yin’s own account)

Biography of Perfected Wu Meng

Biography of Perfected Xu Xun

Biography of Perfected Xu Mai

Biography of Yang Xi

Biography of Bao Jing

Volume 107

Biographies Section: Recorded Accounts

A Brief Biography of Master Tao

A Record of the Life and Deeds of the Master Who Lived in Seclusion at Huayang

Biography of the Pure and White Master of Mount Mao in the Liang Dynasty

Volume 108

Biographies Section: Biographies

Biographies of the Immortals (accounts of many immortals)

Biographies Section: Recorded Accounts

A Brief Biography of Master Tao

A Record of the Life and Deeds of the Master Who Lived in Seclusion at Huayang

Biography of the Pure and White Master of Mount Mao in the Liang Dynasty

Volume 108

Biographies Section: Biographies

Biographies of the Immortals

Volume 109

Biographies Section: Biographies

Biographies of the Immortals (accounts of the deeds of divine immortals)

Volume 110

Biographies Section: Biographies

Biographies of Cave Immortals (biographies of immortals who dwell in grotto-heavens)

Volume 111

Biographies Section: Biographies

Biographies of Cave Immortals

Volume 112

Biographies Section: Biographies

Accounts of Encounters with the Response of Immortals (accounts of divine responses and extraordinary encounters)

Volume 113 (Part One)

Biographies Section: Biographies

Accounts of Encounters with the Response of Immortals (continued)

Volume 113 (Part Two)

Biographies Section: Biographies

Supplementary Biographies of Immortals (continuing the biographies of immortals)

Volume 114

Biographies Section: Biographies

Preface to Collected Immortals of the Walled City

Volume 115

Biographies Section: Biographies

Preface to Collected Immortals of the Walled City (continued)

Volume 116

Biographies Section: Biographies

Preface to Collected Immortals of the Walled City (continued)

Volume 117

Numinous Efficacy Section (accounts of numinous manifestations)

Palaces and Temples (Daoist temples)

Imperially Composed Preface by Emperor Zhenzong

Preface by Master Guangcheng

Account of the Kaiguanyuan Temple’s Spirit-Transported Halls and Pavilion Crossing the Lake and Manifesting Its Power in Raozhou

Account of the Numinous Manifestation After Feng Xingxi of Yangzhou Destroyed the Su Ling Palace

Account of the Numinous Manifestation When Two Monks at Wenzhu Terrace Struck the Image of the Heavenly Worthy Who Relieves Suffering and Then Rescued It

Volume 117

Numinous Efficacy Section

Palaces and Temples

Imperially Composed Preface by Emperor Zhenzong

Preface by Master Guangcheng

Account of the Kaiguanyuan Temple’s Spirit-Transported Halls and Pavilion Crossing the Lake and Manifesting Its Power in Raozhou

Account of the Numinous Manifestation After Feng Xingxi of Yangzhou Destroyed the Su Ling Palace

At Wenzhu Terrace, two monks struck the image of the Celestial Worthy Who Rescues the Suffering; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

The image of the Lord Lao at Taiqing Palace in Bozhou thwarted thieves; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

When Perfected Zhou lived in the Upper Scripture Hall, the hall’s foundations displayed spiritual efficacy.

Ten monks came to destroy Lady Wei’s altar. Nine of them were bitten by tigers, revealing its spiritual efficacy.

Yan Zhuan excavated the iron pillar in Hongzhou; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Wang Feng and Wu Xinglu destroyed and excavated Longxing Abbey in Chengdu; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

General Liu took soil from Dongming Abbey to build a residence; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Prince of Nankang dreamed of two divine beings who told him he would one day become wealthy and honored; the prediction later came true.

The craftsmen at Kaiyuan Abbey in Guozhou all had the same dream. In it, they received timber, and later its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Chancellor Cui of Beidu’s Qianqiu Terrace built a Daoist temple because of a dream; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Chancellor Liu Zhan dreamed of a Celestial Worthy who told him he would serve as chancellor again; the prediction later came true.

Chancellor Li Wei built a Daoist temple because of a dream; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Chancellor Zheng fulfilled a vow by building Zhenning Abbey in Ningzhou; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Chancellor Liu Zhan dreamed of a Celestial Worthy who told him he would serve as chancellor again; the prediction later came true.

Chancellor Li Wei built a Daoist temple because of a dream; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Chancellor Zheng fulfilled a vow by building Zhenning Abbey in Ningzhou; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Chancellor Duan fulfilled a vow by building Xiandu Abbey in Zhongzhou; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

A red light appeared at Louguan, warning people to flee danger; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Fascicle 118: Records of Daoist Spiritual Efficacy

The image of the Celestial Worthy carved from wood displayed spiritual efficacy; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

At Shifang County in Hanzhou, an iron-cast image of a Celestial Worthy floated along on the water; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

The Perfected Lord of Mount Qingcheng bestowed money, and later his spiritual efficacy became evident. The account of the iron image’s manifestation is appended here.

The Celestial Worthy at Wangxian Abbey in Xunyang County, Jinzhou, helped people judge legal disputes; later, his spiritual efficacy became evident.

Zhang Renbiao recited the Celestial Worthy Taiyi Who Rescues the Suffering; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Li Shao painted an image of the Celestial Worthy Taiyi; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Yang Shimo built a Daoist temple and attained longevity; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Lü Xi built a Daoist temple, and immortals came and went there; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

The black-bearded Lord Lao summoned Emperor Daizong to tour the ten isles and three islands; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

A jade image of Lord Lao appeared at Yuju Abbey in answer to a dream; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Characters of Lord Lao appeared on a naturally formed stone. Lord Lao sent rain, and later his spiritual efficacy became evident.

The lay practitioner Lai predicted that Lord Lao would be born as a young ruler; the prediction later came true.

Jia Xiang reverently served Lord Lao; later, his spiritual efficacy became evident.

Shen Ying made offerings to Lord Lao; later, his spiritual efficacy became evident.

Yao Gu built a hall for Lord Lao; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Yang Nao’er served Lord Lao; later, his spiritual efficacy became evident.

Fascicle 119: Records of Daoist Spiritual Efficacy

The image of the Celestial Master on the wall of Zhaocheng Abbey displayed spiritual efficacy; the account of an efficacious silk painting is appended here.

The Celestial Master’s Well in Lingzhou made up for a shortfall in the salt tax; later, its spiritual efficacy became evident.

Li Huan met the Celestial Master (Tianshi) in a dream. The Celestial Master told him he would be appointed prefect of Lingzhou, and this later came to pass.

Xie Zhen was carefully repairing a wall when he met the Celestial Master, who gave him Fulu (talismans and registers). Their efficacy later became apparent.

The Daoist Liu Fangying treated illnesses using the sword techniques taught to him by the Celestial Master, and his treatment later proved effective.

A statue of the Queen Mother of the West manifested its power and rescued people.

Li Huan met the Celestial Master in a dream. The Celestial Master told him he would be appointed prefect of Lingzhou, and this later came to pass.

Xie Zhen was carefully repairing a wall when he met the Celestial Master, who gave him Fulu. Their efficacy later became apparent.

The Daoist Liu Fangying treated illnesses using the sword techniques taught to him by the Celestial Master, and his treatment later proved effective.

A statue of the Queen Mother of the West manifested its power and cured illnesses. (The account includes stories of three generals.)

During a flood in the Gorge of the Yellow Demon God at Guizhou, a deity rescued boats.

The Elder of Qingcheng and Ge Wanggui appeared in the form of divine officers, protectors of Daoism.

Perfected Luo sent down rain, helping to raise money.

The statue of the Flying Heavenly God King at Kaiyuan Temple in Jiazhou manifested its power and repelled thieves.

Zhao Kuangning, King of Chu, received an auspicious sign from the Northern Emperor, a northern deity revered in Daoism.

After Li Changxia recited the Scripture for Dispelling Calamities, its efficacy became apparent.

After Cui Zhou recited the Scripture of Salvation, its efficacy became apparent.

Yao Yuanchong’s daughter devoted herself sincerely to cultivation, burned incense, and recited scriptures. Lord Lao bestowed a scripture upon her, and its efficacy later became apparent.

After Wang Daoke recited the Tianpeng Incantation, its efficacy became apparent.

After Wang Qingyuan recited the Scripture of Divine Incantations, its efficacy became apparent.

Someone at the Immortal Capital Temple on Mount Pingdu in Zhongzhou borrowed and read the Scripture of Great Peace, and its efficacy later became apparent.

Master Ye of Yuxiao Palace on Mount Tiantai used Fulu to treat a deranged illness caused by evil influences, and their efficacy later became apparent.

Jia Qiong received the Register of the Youth, a Daoist document conferred upon initiates, and its efficacy later became apparent.

After Yin Yan recited and studied the Scripture of the Hidden Talisman, its efficacy became apparent.

Zhao Ye received the Zhengyi Register, the ordination document of the Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) tradition, and its efficacy later became apparent.

The monk Facheng secretly altered a Daoist scripture and later suffered the consequences.

The monk Xingduan altered the Scripture of the Five Cooks without authorization and later suffered the consequences.

Master Ye of Yuxiao Palace on Mount Tiantai used Fulu to treat a deranged illness caused by evil influences, and their efficacy later became apparent.

Jia Qiong received the Register of the Youth, a Daoist document conferred upon initiates, and its efficacy later became apparent.

After Yin Yan recited and studied the Scripture of the Hidden Talisman, its efficacy became apparent.

Zhao Ye received the Zhengyi Register, the ordination document of the Zhengyi tradition, and its efficacy later became apparent.

The monk Facheng secretly altered a Daoist scripture and later suffered the consequences.

The monk Xingduan altered the Scripture of the Five Cooks without authorization and later suffered the consequences.

Cui Gongfu took away a precious Daoist scripture and did not return it; he later suffered the consequences.

After Liu Zaizhi recited the Tianpeng Incantation, its efficacy became apparent.

After Yao Sheng recited the Scripture of the Yellow Court, its efficacy became apparent.

Volume 120 of the Records of the Efficacy of Daoism: An ancient bell from the Qingxu Temple in Qingtian County, Chuzhou, returned of its own accord, and its efficacy later became apparent.

A bronze bell at Zongxuan Temple on Mount Qingcheng could not be damaged, and its efficacy later became apparent.

A Daoist who cast a bell at Taiping Temple in Wenjiang County attained the Dao and became an immortal.

The great bell at the former Guanshan Temple in Pengshan, Meizhou, injured the temple’s craftsmen, and its efficacy later became apparent.

Washing an ulcer with water from an ancient bronze bell had remarkable healing effects (with an account of the bell’s miraculous powers appended).

The ancient bell at Daochang Temple in Nanping County, Yuzhou, was miraculous and extraordinary.

The ancient bell at the salt wells of Qiannan remained undamaged and rust-free after many years.

A monk stole the ancient bell at Yuxiao Palace on Mount Tiantai and suddenly died.

The bell at Longxing Temple in Kaizhou could clear people of wrongful accusations (with an account of the Yun’an Bell appended).

The bell at Kaiyuan Temple in Qingjiang Commandery, Shizhou, once appeared to someone in a dream.

The bell at Youwei Temple in Hongzhou was forcibly taken by a prefectural official and sent to a Buddhist monastery.

Accounts of the Celestial Master’s Sword miraculously curing illness.

Accounts of Zhang Rang’s Yellow Spirit Seal, a Daoist ritual seal, curing illness.

An account of Fan Xiyue using the Canopy Seal, a Daoist ritual seal, to pray for rain.

The bell in Shangyu County, Yuezhou, once rang by itself while buried underground.

An account of Emperor Wen of Sui entering a temple while Wang Qian was holding out in Shu.

Accounts of the Celestial Master’s Sword miraculously curing illness.

Accounts of Zhang Rang’s Yellow Spirit Seal curing illness.

An account of Fan Xiyue using the Canopy Seal to pray for rain.

The bell in Shangyu County, Yuezhou, once rang by itself while buried underground.

After Emperor Wen of Sui held a Yellow Register Retreat, a major Daoist ritual for blessing and averting calamity, Shu was pacified while Wang Qian was holding out there.

An account of the Venerable of Mount Qingcheng, a legendary immortal, bestowing dragon sprout on the Yellow Emperor and bringing down timely rain.

An account of the Celestial Master Ye Fashan holding a ritual offering and subduing demons.

An account of Lu Wei, a native of Fanyang, holding a ritual offering for his natal destiny, the record of an individual’s birth and allotted fate.

An account of Cui Tu performing a Yellow Register Retreat to pray for his mother’s ascent to heaven.

An account of Helian Chong performing a Yellow Register Retreat to release his father from karmic grievances.

An account of Tang Xian performing a Yellow Register Retreat, through which his mother ascended to heaven.

An account of Li Chengsi performing a Yellow Register Retreat to release his wife and children from karmic grievances.

An account of Wu Tao performing a Yellow Register Retreat and thereby averting the calamities of war.

An account of Gongsun Pu performing a Yellow Register Retreat to repent for karmic grievances from a previous life.

Scroll 121: Records of Daoist Miracles

An account of Master Hu performing a Pure Retreat, a period of quiet purification and abstinence, and its miraculous effects.

An account of Cui Xuanliang performing a Yellow Register Retreat (with an account of his recitation of scriptures appended).

An account of people in Wuchang holding a ritual offering to pray for rain.

An account of Xu Zhu performing a Yellow Register Retreat for his father.

An account of Zhang Ban’s wife accompanying money sent to be deposited in the treasury of the Celestial Bureaucracy, the Daoist heavenly administration.

An account of an official responsible for commercial affairs at the Suzhou Salt and Iron Office establishing a Divine Incantation Ritual, a rite involving the recitation of sacred spells and a purification ceremony.

An account of Chancellor Duke Du Bin performing a Yellow Register Retreat and escaping the judgment of King Yama.

An account of Prince Weigao of Nankang establishing a Yellow Register ritual site.

An account of Li Yue’s wife requesting a Yellow Register ritual.

An account of Lu Ben establishing a Yellow Register ritual site.

An account of Fan Lingyan performing a Northern Emperor ritual, a Daoist rite honoring deities of the north, to destroy fox demons.

An account of Xianyu Fu establishing a Yellow Register ritual site to release people from karmic grievances.

Li Yue’s wife established a Yellow Register altar (a Daoist purification ritual held to avert calamity, pray for blessings, and deliver the souls of the dead); its efficacy was later confirmed.

Lu Ben established a Yellow Register altar; its efficacy was later confirmed.

Fan Lingyan established a Northern Emperor altar (a ritual site for worshipping the northern deities and seeking their protection) and destroyed a fox spirit.

To resolve a grievance, Xianyu Fu established a Yellow Register altar; its efficacy was later confirmed.

Dou Dexuan made a special request in a memorial for a Heavenly Talisman to investigate a certain matter, but the request was never fulfilled.

Ma Jingxuan established a Yellow Register altar for his wife; its efficacy was later confirmed.

Qin Wan was convicted of cheating people with false measures of volume and length. He then performed a Yellow Register purification ritual; its efficacy was later confirmed.

Du Pengju’s parents performed a Southern Dipper longevity rite, a Daoist ceremony praying for a long life; its efficacy was later confirmed.

Volume 122: Records of Daoist Efficacy

The purification master at Donghua Abbey in Quzhou concealed and misappropriated communal property; the matter later came to light.

With the prefect’s help, Kaiyuan Abbey in Wuzhou recovered its communal property; the matter was later confirmed.

A Daoist at Shangqing Abbey in Yuhang, Hangzhou, concealed and misappropriated communal property; the matter later came to light.

Li Shang cut down the pines and cypresses at the ancient abbey on Oxheart Mountain in Longzhou; the matter was later confirmed.

Pinggai Temple in Xinjing County, Shuzhou, was robbed, damaged, and cut down; the matter was later confirmed.

The doors of Kaiyuan Abbey in Jiazhou were taken and used as a horse stall; the matter was later confirmed.

The column bases in the Hall of the Three Generals at Jingyun Abbey in Chengdu were later confirmed.

The loom-supporting stone at the fortune-telling stall in Chengdu, a stone said to have held up a loom, was later confirmed.

The stone chamber at the cave entrance of Yuju Temple in Chengdu was later confirmed.

The wheel ruts at Sanyuan Abbey in Jintang County, Hanzhou, were later confirmed.

The nine-sea divine dragon at Yuju Temple was later confirmed.

The Heavenly Pool at Shangqing Palace on the summit of Mount Qingcheng was later confirmed, with an additional account of the efficacy of the water at the six watches.

The Dingdong Water at Gewanggui Temple was later confirmed.

The nine wells at Xuanyuan Abbey, Changli Temple, in Jintang County were later confirmed.

The Yin Jun Cave on Mount Xiandu was later confirmed.

The stone casket of Perfected Yin at Dongguan in Jiazhou was later confirmed.

The stone basin and iron mortar of the female immortal Lu Miaodian on Mount Jiuyi were later confirmed.

Emperor Zhenzong personally composed the preface to the Wondrous Scripture for Protecting Life of the Heavenly Child.

Prefaces to the Records of Efficacy of the Supreme One’s Yin Jun Cave, the Stone Casket of Perfected Yin at Dongguan in Jiazhou, and the Stone Basin and Iron Mortar of the Female Immortal Lu Miaodian on Mount Jiuyi; the Imperial Preface to the Wondrous Scripture for Protecting Life of the Heavenly Child; and the Records of Efficacy of the Scripture of the Heavenly Child of the Supreme One.

In the year of the sacrifice at Fenyin, I served at the Frost Terrace as an official responsible for examining and verifying records. In the autumn of the following year, because I had failed to establish the facts while handling a case, I was demoted to a subordinate post in Ninghai.

In the tenth month of that winter, the Celestial Worthy of the Sacred Ancestor descended upon the Hall of Extending Grace. Emperor Zhenzong personally presided over the ceremony and listened reverently to the sacred instructions. This event ensured the continuation of the imperial house’s blessings and brought greater clarity to the origins and transmission of the immortal Way. The court proclaimed this auspicious sign throughout the realm, hoping its blessings would endure for a hundred generations. The emperor therefore devoted himself even more earnestly to the highest teachings of Daoism.

Earlier, the court had sent Daoist books and precious Daoist texts from the Secret Pavilion’s collection to Yuhang Commandery. It instructed Qi Lun, then prefect of Yuhang and formerly an Academician of the Privy Council, and Chen Yaozuo, Commissioner of Water Transport and serving Academician of the Hanlin Academy, to select the Daoist masters Chongsu Zhu Yiqian, Feng Dezhi, and others to collate and organize the texts. Their task was to compile a Daoist canon and present it to the court. But the catalog’s headings and outline were disordered, its divisions uneven, and its arrangement differed in several respects from the catalogs of the “Jade Net” and the “Jade Warp.” As the years passed, the work remained unfinished.

Just then, Qi Lun and the others submitted a memorial, and the court appointed me to take over the task. Wang Qinruo, former chief minister and Minister of Works, was then overseeing the compilation; he, too, mistakenly believed I was capable of the work. The following winter, I was appointed Gentleman of the Secretariat and assigned to this task alone.

I gathered the Daoist books issued by the court, then assembled more than a thousand volumes of old Daoist canon texts from Suzhou, and more than a thousand each from Yuezhou and Taizhou, along with Daoist books later issued by the court to Fujian and other prefectures, including the Scripture of Mani, the Bright Messenger. Working with the Daoist priests, I followed the classification headings of the Three Caverns and the cataloging principles of the Four Supplements, reviewing the format item by item, comparing differences and similarities, and arranging the texts accordingly. At last, we completed a Daoist canon of 4,565 volumes. The cases were arranged according to the Thousand Character Classic, beginning with the character “Heaven” and ending with “Palace,” using 466 characters as case labels. The work was titled The Great Song Heavenly Palace Treasury. In the spring of the third year of Tianxi, seven complete sets had been copied and presented to the court.

I had only recently begun to study Daoism, yet I was fortunate enough to be present at such a grand undertaking and to receive the weighty responsibility of helping organize the books of the immortals. I am filled with anxiety and shame at my own inadequacy. I am like a frog leaping in a broken well, long confined to narrow ground; like an insect perched on foam, whose entire view extends no farther than the mouth of a wine jar. Though I am advanced in years and have little time left, I still treasure every moment. I therefore devoted myself to studying the Three Vehicles—the Buddhist paths of the hearer, the solitary awakened one, and the bodhisattva—and examined the Four Supplements, the four classes of texts that support the classification of Daoist scriptures. I selected their essential points, arranged them by subject, and sought out their subtleties…

The place illuminated by the lamp is small, yet there are many accounts of jade pendants and golden ornaments. Terms such as Niwan, the Red Child, and the Nine Palaces each belong to a particular aspect; terms such as the Spirit Chamber, the Infant, and the Hundred Paths all take the two halves of Yin and Yang as their foundation. As for the mysteries of the “Three Flights and Three Radiances” and the subtleties of the “Nine Transformations and Ten Metamorphoses,” each school investigates its own methods, and each claims that its account is the most essential. Yet these theories are like carving a mark on a boat to find a lost sword or waiting by a tree stump for a rabbit: though their outward forms differ, how far apart can they really be in their attachment to old traces? I therefore examined and arranged these materials, selected the essential passages from the seven sections of the Yunji Qiqian, and added a few profound teachings from the writings of various masters. Together, they form 120 volumes, containing roughly ten thousand entries. Studying this work can take one aloft among the clouds; reading it can lead one deep into the relationship between Heaven and humanity. I have examined and classified the various materials, and have tried to indicate their central points. In this way, I repay the kindness of Emperor Zhenzong, who recognized and entrusted me; provide material for His Majesty’s reading at night; and contribute in some measure to the work of collating texts in the Academy. Beyond this, I have done no more than modestly promote the mysterious Dao.

Your servant Zhang Junfang respectfully writes this preface.

Volume One: The Section on Dao and De

A General Discussion of Dao and De

The Laojun Zhigui says: “Nothing surpasses Dao and De as the highest realm. Next in greatness is nothing other than the divine and numinous; next, nothing greater than Great Harmony, the state in which Yin and Yang are harmonized and all things blend together; next, nothing more revered than Heaven and Earth; and next, nothing more evident than Yin.”

The Laojun Zhigui says: In the Highest (the supreme state), nothing is greater than Dao and De (Virtue/Power). Next, nothing is more encompassing than the spirits; after that, nothing is more encompassing than Great Harmony (the state in which Yin-Yang is balanced and all things are in accord). Then come Heaven and Earth, Yin-Yang, and finally the Great Sage (the wise and enlightened person).

Dao and De can be pointed to in words, but their source cannot be traced; the spirits can be nourished, but their full power cannot be brought forth. Great Harmony can be experienced, but cannot be produced through human contrivance. The workings of Heaven and Earth can be observed, but cannot be fully expressed in words. Yin-Yang can be put to use, but cannot be transmitted in its entirety. The Great Sage can be looked up to, but is difficult to describe in words.

Therefore, measuring instruments can determine only a limited range, and calculation can yield only a limited number. Knowledge reaches only a shallow understanding, and human effort can accomplish only so much. Things too numerous to count cannot be calculated one by one, and things too vast cannot be measured. The subtle and wondrous, and the thorough investigation of how things are, lie beyond what knowledge can gauge. The highest degree of fulfillment cannot be attained through human effort alone. Nor can the calamities and disorders of the world be wholly eliminated through particular measures.

Thus, the Dao that is not deliberately proclaimed and the De that is not deliberately cultivated are the foundations of government. A reputation that is not given a name, and achievements that arise naturally without claiming credit, are the source of transformation.

When rulers take deliberate action, the people of the world develop all manner of desires. They cast aside simplicity and honesty, muddying clear instruction. Rulers open the people’s ears and eyes, leading them to pursue sounds and sights; satisfy their appetites with the Five Flavors; please them with accomplishments and virtue; instruct them in benevolence and righteousness; and guide them with ritual propriety. The people are then like those who awaken from sleep and emerge from a dark room: they climb to a high place and gaze in every direction, observe the stars, and distinguish the sun from the moon. Instruction now has explicit formulations, virtue can be itemized, achievements can be recounted, and names and categories can be distinguished one by one.

Once intelligence and cleverness are allowed to run unchecked, crookedness and deceit arise. When Dao and De are obstructed, the spirits are cut off from humanity. Calamities multiply one after another, and the Qi of Great Harmony gradually dissipates. People throughout the world grow anxious and confused, rushing about amid disputes over right and wrong and losing their natural way of life. Their changing desires disturb all things. They grow ever more haggard and dark of complexion, their hearts filled with worry. They can no longer be at ease in their own lives or take pleasure in their customs, and ultimately they damage the lifespan endowed by Heaven. All this is caused by tyranny.

Thus, ruler and ministers are mutually anxious and restless, and father and son are mutually burdened with concern…

When family members worry about one another excessively, brothers grieve over each other’s troubles, and ordinary people are thereby thrown into fear and unease, their bodies and minds become entangled. Such mutual burdening soon brings calamity.

When fathers and sons are unwilling to part, and brothers are consumed by sorrow, they ask after one another’s rest at night and visit to inquire about one another’s health in the morning. They bid farewell whenever they go out and exchange greetings whenever they return. Bound by ritual at every turn, they are all the more likely to suffer harm. When a subject appears before the ruler, he looks flustered and hurries forward, bows forcefully, hunches his shoulders and bends his elbows, then kowtows and shuffles on his knees—all to display reverence for his superior. This shows that ruler and subject are not close.

Thus, the Dao (the Way) that can be clearly expressed in words has already taken on a measure of moral convention and is no longer in a state of natural Wuwei (non-action). Things that can be designated by names have already made their achievements and reputations manifest; they are no longer genuine in their original simplicity.

The Brief Outline of the Laozi’s Pointers says: The generation of all things and the accomplishment of affairs must originate in the formless; forms, in turn, emerge from what has no name. The formless, nameless Dao is the root of all things. It is neither cold nor hot, and belongs neither to the gong note nor to the shang note. Listen for it, and it cannot be heard; look for it, and no distinct image can be seen. Touch it, and it cannot be known; taste it, and no flavor can be discerned.

Thus, as the source of all things, the Dao is a seamless whole; as an image, it has no form; as a sound, it is faint and hard to hear; as a flavor, it has no taste that can be presented or distinguished. For this very reason, it can be the root of all things and run through Heaven and Earth, with all things following its course.

If it were warm, it could not also be cold; if it belonged to the gong note, it could not also belong to the shang note. Every formed thing has its own distinctions, and every sound belongs to a particular tone. So what displays a specific image is not the truly great image, and what produces a distinguishable sound is not the truly great sound. Yet without the Four Images—the four kinds of forms that make up all things—appearing, the Great Image could not be made clear; without the Five Tones—gong, shang, jue, zhi, and yu—sounding, the Great Sound could not be realized. When the Four Images appear and things do not cling to any particular ruler, the Great Image is made clear. When the Five Tones sound and the mind does not cling to any particular sound, the Great Sound is realized.

Therefore, hold to the Great Image, and all under Heaven will turn toward you; employ the Great Sound, and customs will change. When the formless Dao becomes manifest, all under Heaven may turn toward it, yet it cannot be grasped. When the subtle sound arrives, customs may change, yet its meaning is hard to explain in words. Heaven therefore brings forth the five kinds of things, but none of them is a particular thing on which the Dao depends in its workings. The sage carries out the five kinds of teaching, but does not change people by relying on spoken commands. Hence it is said: “A Dao that can be clearly spoken is not the constant Dao; a name that can be fixed is not the constant name.”

The root of the five kinds of things is neither hot nor cold, neither soft nor hard. The root of the five kinds of teaching is neither bright nor dark, neither benevolent nor harmful. Though past and present differ, times change, and customs shift, this root remains unchanged. This is what is meant by: “From antiquity to the present, its name has never disappeared.” If Heaven and Earth did not follow it, things could not come into being; if governance did not follow it, achievements could not be realized. Thus past and present are connected, and beginning and end are one. By grasping the ancient Dao, one can guide the present; by observing what is happening now, one can recognize its ancient beginnings. This is what is meant by constancy. It has no fixed form of brightness or darkness, warmth or coolness, and so to know the constant Dao is called “clarity.”

The generation of all things and the accomplishment of every achievement come from it; it can therefore be used to examine the root of things. Lightning may be swift, yet it cannot reach everywhere in an instant; even riding the wind, one cannot expect to arrive with a single breath. The best at swiftness are those who do not rush to race ahead; the best at arriving are those who do not deliberately hurry on their way. Therefore, however grand a Dao may be when spoken of and displayed, it is not enough to encompass Heaven and Earth; no formed thing, however fully developed, is enough to contain all things. Praise cannot exhaust its beauty, and song cannot fully express its vastness. No name can aptly designate it, and no words can say it all. A name must set limits, and any description must necessarily…

“Origin” refers to the source on which all things depend and from which they arise. Whenever distinctions are made, something is left out; whenever a basis is posited, the origins of all things cannot be fully traced. Omission leads to a serious departure from what is real, while failing to encompass everything makes it impossible to name things appropriately. These points can be explained further.

The term “Dao” names what all things arise from and follow in their course. “Mysterious” describes its hidden depth: it is the source from which all things emerge in obscurity. “Profound” means that it invites inquiry but cannot be exhausted. “Great” means that it contains all things and has no bounds. “Far-reaching” means that it extends beyond reach. “Subtle” means that it is faint and hidden from sight. Thus, terms such as “Dao,” “mysterious,” “profound,” “great,” “wondrous,” and “far-reaching” each convey something, yet none can encompass its true reality. It is vast without limit and cannot be named “small”; it is subtle and formless, and cannot be summed up as “great.” That is why the Dao De Jing says that, if forced to give it a name, one may call it “Dao,” or call it “mysterious,” though in itself it has no fixed name.

Describing it in words easily departs from its constant nature; assigning it a name easily leads away from what is real. Deliberate action obstructs its nature, while clinging to things causes one to lose the source. Therefore, the sage does not take words as fundamental and so does not violate the constant Dao; does not treat names as eternal truths and so does not stray from what is genuine; does not handle all affairs through deliberate action and so does not damage their nature; and does not cling to established ways and so does not lose the source.

Thus, to pursue the meaning of Laozi’s writings through debate is to lose their intent; to insist on probing their terminology is also to contradict their meaning. The central aim of Laozi’s teaching is to investigate the original source of all things and thereby explain their natural nature, and to illuminate profound and far-reaching principles so as to dispel confusion. It follows nature without acting recklessly, reduces human interference without imposing by force, honors the root so that lesser matters subside, and preserves what grows from the root by holding fast to it. It looks down on clever techniques and advocates preventing trouble before it arises. It does not harshly blame others, but seeks the cause within oneself. These are its main principles.

As for “law,” its emphasis is on making things uniform and alike, and restraining them through concrete forms. “Names” emphasize establishing what things truly are and regulating them through words.

Confucians advocate caring for everyone in a thorough and all-embracing way, and use praise to advance this view. Mohists advocate frugality and build their doctrine on wisdom. The Eclectics draw on the strengths of many schools and combine them in practice. Yet when things are constrained by outward appearances, artifice and falsity arise; when things are defined by names, people easily lose the ability to understand circumstances and extend forgiveness and tolerance. Using praise to promote things gives rise to struggles for reputation and victory; establishing things through correction leads to deviation and conflict; and putting many views together to advance things brings impurity and confusion. These approaches all make use of the branches while discarding the root. Without support from the root, things cannot be followed for long.

People may travel the same road yet ultimately arrive at different places. They may seem to agree on a common purpose while pursuing aims that diverge in practice. Scholars are then bewildered by competing views: they do not understand what these views ultimately seek to achieve and lose sight of their respective directions. When people see what views have in common, they call it a “method”; when they see ways of defining things, they call them “names”; when they see the doctrine of pure love for others, they call it “Confucianism”; when they see the doctrine of frugality, they call it “Mohism”; and when they see an approach that does not adhere to a single position, they call it “eclecticism.” People name these views according to the traits they observe, then cling to their own positions in line with their preferences. Thus arise tangled, contradictory arguments and a situation in which people pursue different directions and dispute with one another.

This kind of writing uses the conclusion to confirm the opening, then begins from the opening to connect the whole work. The author opens up a line of thought without stating the whole principle outright, and guides readers without forcing them to accept it. Only by examining the text closely can readers grasp its meaning; by pursuing its implications further, they can understand its reasoning. The writing is skilled at developing an argument from the beginning of a matter and, at the end, showing where the various views ultimately lead. Thus, those whose views are similar and who have been prompted by the same matter will appreciate the argument introduced at the beginning and develop it further; those who hold different views and have ideas of their own will not be forcibly drawn along. Only by examining the text closely can readers grasp its meaning; by pursuing its implications further, they can understand its reasoning. The writing is skilled at developing an argument from the beginning of a matter and, at the end, showing where it ultimately leads. Thus, those whose views are similar and who have been prompted by the same matter will appreciate the argument at the beginning and develop it further; those who hold different views and have ideas of their own will appreciate it too…

The principle that things ultimately return to one and the same place can serve as proof. Though paths differ, they must finally lead to the same destination; though thoughts vary in countless ways, they ultimately arrive at the same truth. Pointing out their common destination and outcome is a way of explaining the highest principle. Those who reflect on related matters and draw connections often recognize the truth with delight when their own reasoning confirms it.

Things endure because their decline is anticipated and guarded against; achievements are accomplished by not clinging to fame. Those who truly endure do not rely on preservation itself, but never forget that they may perish. Those who are truly secure do not take security for granted, but never forget danger. Thus, those who seek only to preserve themselves end up perishing, while those who remember the possibility of perishing can endure. Those who simply settle into their present circumstances readily fall into danger, while those who remember danger can remain secure.

One skilled in exerting strength can lift a down feather; one skilled in hearing can hear thunder. These are examples of how principle runs counter to outward appearances: what seems slight may conceal extraordinary power. Security is indeed security, yet one should not suppose that security rests on security itself. Existence is indeed existence, yet one should not imagine that clinging to existence is what preserves it. Lords and kings—ancient titles for feudal rulers and monarchs—are indeed noble, yet nobility itself should not be treated as the source of their nobility. These are all important principles.

Names arise from the forms of things, while designations come from what people observe and seek; neither names nor designations arise from nothing. But once one becomes fixated on a name, it can stray far from what it was meant to express. A designation alone, too, cannot exhaust the nature of a thing. Thus, when speaking of the Mysterious (xuan), one must also say “the Mysterious upon the Mysterious”; and when speaking of the Dao (the Way), one must know that it is only one of the four great things between Heaven and Earth.

The “Way of the Ruler” chapter of the Han Feizi says: “The Dao is the beginning of all things and the standard for distinguishing right from wrong.” All things are born from the Dao, so the Dao is their root. Right and wrong become clear through the Dao, so the Dao is also the guiding principle for discerning them. An enlightened ruler who holds fast to the root can understand the origins of all things; one who grasps this guiding principle can see where success and failure begin.

Therefore, a ruler should remain empty and still in a position above, waiting for ministers to reveal their intentions and abilities. When the ruler does not disclose personal likes and dislikes, ministers can show their true selves. When the ruler does not make a show of virtue or wisdom, ministers will each prepare themselves and bring their strengths fully to bear.

A ruler may possess wisdom, but by not using it personally to make plans, can allow all things to find their proper place. With the ability to act, but without boasting of personal virtue, the ruler can observe the principles behind ministers’ conduct. With courage, but without giving way to anger, the ruler can allow ministers to put their bravery fully to use. Thus, by not flaunting personal wisdom, the ruler sees clearly; by not claiming virtue, the ruler accomplishes great things; and by not displaying courage, the ruler strengthens the state.

When ministers each keep to their duties, officials follow established procedures, and the ruler appoints people according to their abilities, this is called following the constant Dao. The ruler remains still above, unconfined by any particular office or reputation; ministers, meanwhile, occupy their lower positions with respect and caution.

When an enlightened ruler practices Wuwei (non-action) above, ministers will respectfully and carefully fulfill their duties. A ruler skilled in governing lets those with wisdom plan to the fullest, then makes decisions on the basis of their plans, and is therefore not limited by personal wisdom. The ruler lets the able display their talents, then appoints them on that basis, and is therefore not limited by personal ability. When ministers earn merit, the achievements belong to the ruler; when mistakes occur, the ministers responsible bear the blame. The ruler is therefore not burdened by reputation.

Thus, even without claiming virtue, the ruler can be a teacher to the virtuous; even without claiming wisdom, the ruler can judge the wise. Ministers bear the labor, while the ruler reaps the achievements: this is the constant method by which an enlightened ruler governs.

The Huainan Honglie—that is, the Huainanzi—says: “The Dao (the Way) covers the sky and bears the earth. It extends in every direction and reaches the Eight Extremities, the farthest bounds of heaven and earth. Its height has no limit, and its depth cannot be measured. It encompasses heaven and earth, yet gives all things their nature in a formless way.

“The Dao is like the source of a spring: surging and flowing, at first turbulent, then gradually growing full. It is also like muddy water: though murky and unsettled, it slowly clears. Set the Dao upright, and it fills heaven and earth; spread it out, and it reaches across the four seas. In its use, it is inexhaustible and bound by neither morning nor evening. Unfolded, it covers the Six Directions—the four quarters above and below; folded up, it cannot fill even a palm.

“The Dao can contract and expand, remain hidden or become manifest. It may seem weak, yet become strong; seem soft, yet become firm. It reaches through the Four Dimensions—the four directions and their four corners—contains Yin-Yang, and permeates the cosmos, bringing forth the Three Lights: the sun, moon, and stars. It is supremely soft, able to nourish all that is vast, and supremely subtle, almost impossible to perceive.

“Mountains are high through it, and abysses deep; beasts run and birds fly through it. The sun and moon shine, and the stars move through it. The qilin roams through it, and the phoenix soars through it.”

The ancient Two Sovereigns grasped the foundation of attaining the Dao (the Way) and dwelt at the center. Their spirit was attuned to the transformations of Heaven and Earth, and through this they brought peace to the four quarters. They could therefore set the heavenly bodies in motion and steady the Earth, making Heaven and Earth turn in cycles like a wheel without ever stopping. Like flowing water, they moved onward without end, passing through endings and new beginnings together with the myriad things. Winds rose and clouds gathered; all things received their due response. Thunder sounded and rain fell, while transformations unfolded without limit. Spirits and deities appeared and vanished, darting in and out like lightning. Dragons soared, and phoenixes gathered. Heaven and Earth revolved like a wheel and its hub, circling back again and again. Though the myriad things were shaped and transformed, in the end they could still return to simplicity.

They acted in accord with nature, and so were united with the Dao. Without making a point of speaking, the De (Virtue/Power) they embodied could reach everywhere. Their hearts were calm and joyful, without self-praise, and so they lived in harmony with the myriad things. Though all things differed from one another, each could follow its own nature. Even when their spirit rested in the tiniest place, it was as vast as the whole cosmos. Their De surpassed Heaven and Earth yet accorded with Yin-Yang, regulating the four seasons and harmonizing the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water), nourishing all living beings everywhere. Their beneficence moistened plants and trees and seeped into metal and stone. Birds and beasts grew strong, their fur and feathers glossy; they spread their wings and thrived, and beasts grew horns. Mothers carried their young to term without miscarriage, and eggs did not break. Fathers need not fear losing their sons, nor brothers mourn their younger brothers. Children were not left alone in hardship, and women were not widowed. Rainbows did not appear, and baleful stars did not move through the sky: these were the results of De held within.

The Dao of the Most High gives life to and nourishes all things, yet does not claim them as its own. It brings about their transformations, yet does not rule over them. Whether they are animals that walk on feet and breathe through mouths, or living creatures that fly or crawl, all depend on it to live, yet do not know its benevolence. They also depend on it in death, yet cannot resent it for that. They benefit from it, but cannot praise it; they suffer loss because of it, but cannot blame it.

Gathering and storing things does not make it any richer; giving and bestowing does not make it any poorer. It flows and moves through all things, beyond any means of tracing it to its end. Subtle and profound, it cannot be fathomed by the mind’s effort. Pile things on top of it and it does not grow higher; remove things from it and it does not become level. Add to it and it does not increase; diminish it and it does not grow less. Chop and carve it and it does not grow thinner; kill and destroy it and it cannot be made incomplete. Bore into it and it cannot be made deeper; fill it in and it cannot be made shallower.

It is elusive and unstable, impossible to depict in a concrete form. Though elusive in appearance, its effects are without limit. It is hidden and obscure, yet responds to all things without leaving any trace. Deep and far-reaching, its movements are never in vain. It contracts and expands as the soft and the hard change, and rises, falls, inclines, and turns as Yin-Yang changes.

Ge Xiangong (Ge Xuan, an immortal revered in Daoism) says in the Preface to the Scripture of the Five Thousand Words: “The Lord Lao (Laozi) followed nature and existed even before the realm of the Great Void, formless and unseen, came into being. His origin has no traceable cause. He has endured through the beginning and end of Heaven and Earth, beyond what words or writing can fully express. He exhausts the limitless and reaches the Ultimate Limitlessness, cycling and transforming together with the Great Dao, and becoming the foundation on which Heaven and Earth take root. He spreads Qi in all ten directions and embraces pure, perfect Dao and De. His vastness has no bounds and is difficult to name; his radiance is clear, as if adorned with patterns; his achievements stand lofty and are unfathomable. He is the sovereign of the spirits. The three lights—the sun, moon, and stars—depend on him for their brightness; Heaven and Earth depend on him for life; and the revolving cosmos of Qian and Kun exhales and inhales Jing and Qi through him. He is lofty, yet has no people; exalted…”

Laojun, the honorific title Daoism gives Laozi, has no fixed form or location, yet can encompass and sustain all things without limit. Thus, the heavens in all eight directions proclaim the Great Dao. Before Heaven and Earth were formed, Laojun also descended into the world and served as a teacher to rulers. He did so without interruption from age to age, though people did not know it. He created all things but did not claim credit; this is the mysterious virtue, and for this reason all the sages revere him. The Dao is supreme, and Laojun was never granted a noble title by anyone, yet he has always been honored of his own accord. This is what is meant by Laozi.

During the Zhou dynasty, Laojun once again entrusted himself to a divine spirit and was born as the son of Li Mu. According to legend, he emerged from his mother’s left armpit, and his hair was already white at birth, so he was called “Laozi.” This title arose from the mysterious Dao. Laozi existed before Heaven and Earth took shape and does not grow old, which is why he is called “Laozi.” People often assume that Laozi first appeared in the Zhou dynasty. Yet, according to this passage, his title had already emerged countless kalpas—immensely long ages—before then. Its origins lie so far back in the depths of time that they cannot be traced.

When the Zhou dynasty declined and the Great Dao could no longer be put into practice, Laozi traveled west. Yin Xi, the official guarding Hangu Pass, said, “Is the Great Dao about to disappear? I hope you will write a book for me.” Laozi then wrote two sections on the Dao and De, totaling five thousand characters: the upper and lower sections of the Daode Jing.

The Admonitions of Lord Lao says: “Laojun was born in the Hall of the Mysterious Vastness and Holiness. At that time, Heaven, Earth, the sun, and the moon had not yet taken shape. He had nothing in his hands to hold on to and nothing beneath his feet to stand upon. He simply dwelled suspended in space, neither falling nor sinking. He wore garments formed from the Three Luminaries—the lights of the sun, moon, and stars—and shone in the empty void like the light of the sun and moon today.”

The Preface to the Sacred Record of the Emperor of Primordial Unity says: “Tracing the Great Dao to its source, we find it deep and still, its underlying principle rooted in Wuwei (non-action). The highest De is empty, tranquil, and humble, embracing every kind of mysterious principle.”

In his “Treatise on the Dao” in the Xuangang Lun, the Tang-dynasty author Wu Yun asks, “What is the Dao?” It is the root of emptiness, the source from which all things are created, the foundation of the spirits, and the original source of Heaven and Earth. It is boundless in its vastness, yet so subtle that inside and outside have no meaning. It stretches too far to find its beginning and runs too deep to reach its end. It is so obscure as to be hard to perceive, yet it gives forth light. Quiet and without intention, it brings order to every thing. Formless in its undifferentiated state and silent in its stillness, it gives life to all things, and the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) take shape through it. All things continually reproduce and transform without end. Though they take form, they are always subject to loss. Generation and transformation, formation and destruction, have followed an unchanging pattern from antiquity to the present. This is the Dao.

“What is De?” Heaven and Earth receive their foundations from it, and Yin-Yang moves through it. It orders the Five Phases and regulates change through the four seasons—spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Rulers govern the people by it, and teachers instruct their students by it. Whether in darkness or in light, among animals or plants, all things find their proper place and grow unhindered. Its blessings spread without limit, yet living beings do not know to give thanks for its work. Its benefits reach everywhere, yet the people do not know that they depend on its power. This is De (Virtue/Power).

The Dao permeates all things and enables them to arise; this is called “Dao,” though the Dao has no fixed name. The Dao nourishes all things and enables them to flourish; this is called “De,” though De, too, has no fixed designation. Consider this: Heaven and Earth, people and things, immortals, spirits, and ghosts cannot come into being without the Dao, or reach completion without De. Though all things have been born, they do not know their beginnings; though they have taken form, they cannot see their final destination. Who can discern their foundations by probing what is hidden and tracing what is secret? The Dao enters at the furthest edge of the formed world and begins in the formless state. No one can investigate its outward signs, so it is called “Nature.” Here, “Nature” means the constant operation of Dao and De, as well as the fundamental law of Heaven and Earth.

The scripture also says: “Dao and De are the ancestors of Heaven and Earth; Heaven and Earth are the parents of all things; emperors and kings govern the Three Powers of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity.” If Dao and De, Heaven and Earth, and emperors and kings are originally one, why do eras differ in their degree of simplicity or decadence, and why did the reigns of Yao and Jie differ between good order and disorder? Because Dao and De themselves neither flourish nor decline, while human relationships and social order may prosper or fall into hardship. The fundamental principles of ancient and present times do not change, but people’s hearts and dispositions shift. Thus, when the times are about to become favorable, the true essence of supreme Yang descends and takes form as a ruler. Worthy people assist him, while treacherous people are held in check.

When the times are on the verge of decline, the Great Yin—the essence of Yin Qi—rises to dominance. Wicked people receive support, while the worthy and virtuous withdraw. The workings of Heaven and Earth follow their patterns, and the waxing and waning of Yin and Yang each have their allotted measure; thus the world passes through periods of order and disorder. Conversely, when the utmost Yang’s true essence descends and takes the lead, the worthy and virtuous can assist in governing, while the wicked lie hidden.

Ancient times were simple and unadorned, while later ages became shallow and frivolous, much as a person is ignorant as a child and grows gradually wiser with age. An infant does not yet understand the world, just as people in the high antiquity concealed their simplicity. As a child gradually learns to distinguish right from wrong, this resembles the middle antiquity, when benevolence and righteousness were prized. When a young person comes of age and is ready to learn, this resembles the lower antiquity, when ritual and wisdom were emphasized. In adulthood, desires multiply, just as in the latter age people compete to pursue ostentation and deceit. The affairs of the world change, and each age has its own prevailing customs; this is why simplicity and shallowness differ from one another.

A careful examination of the causes shows that children’s nature changes through their upbringing, and that people’s original simplicity fades as the times change. Even so, a father must educate his children, and a ruler must govern the people. Children should be taught through principles suited to them, and the people should be governed in accordance with De (Virtue/Power). Without proper instruction, teachers and friends can scarcely offer correction; when De has been lost, ritual and music cannot bring society to order. Even imposing punishments and increasing beatings cannot easily restrain the wicked or disobedient children.

Therefore, children must be taught from an early age not to lie, so that they can remain faithful and trustworthy. People must be transformed through customs of simplicity, so that they can rest in natural harmony. From this we can see that unless the people are guided through De, one cannot claim to understand the fundamentals of governance.

In his Preface to the Commentary on the Daodejing, Lu Xisheng of the Tang dynasty writes: “When the Great Dao falls into obscurity and moral instruction in the world declines, great disorder is about to overtake the realm. Whenever such an age arrives, Heaven will surely send a sage into the world. Concerned that the people cannot live securely under orderly governance, the sage devises ways to support what is failing and save a troubled age. The final years of the Zhou dynasty were just such a time.

“Confucius expounded the ritual and musical institutions of the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties to support what was in decline. Laozi drew on the simple, unadorned customs of the era of the Three Sovereigns to save a troubled age. Their fundamental aims were the same. Confucius’s teaching flourished through the refinement of ritual forms, using ritual and culture to regulate people’s emotions. Laozi’s teaching was rooted in simplicity, using simplicity to restore people to their original nature. When nature and emotion reach their highest expression, the sages do not differ. But refinement and simplicity change in different ways, and cannot be treated alike in every age.

“The Book of Changes says, ‘Manifested through benevolence.’ This means making benevolence and virtue visible: it is instruction through ritual and culture. Because the content of such instruction is evident, it is easy to understand; and because it is easy to understand, orthodox explanations can express it fully. The Book of Changes also says, ‘Hidden within its function.’ This means keeping its workings concealed: it is instruction through simplicity. The principles of instruction through simplicity are subtle and difficult to grasp. The harder they are to understand, the more people there are who explain them recklessly.

“Laozi’s teaching takes the Dao as its foundation and uses ‘names’—the designations and institutions of things—as its means of application. It advocates Wuwei (non-action) while leaving nothing undone, and takes the attainment of the highest standard as its goal. Yang Zhu honored Laozi’s fundamental ideas but leaned toward falling short of them, ultimately esteeming the self and belittling external things. Zhuang Zhou put Laozi’s ideas into practice but went too far, striving to reject the teachings of the sages and cast aside cleverness. Shen Buhai and Han Fei departed from Laozi’s ideas about ‘names’; their failing lay in harsh political commands and severe penal laws. Wang Bi and He Yan departed from Laozi’s Dao, lapsing into emptiness and unrestrained speculation. Lu Xisheng regarded all six as examples of those who misunderstood Laozi.

“As a result, people came to believe that Laozi’s central teaching was ultimately at odds with Confucius’s. Some denounced his ideas about names and institutions, claiming that he sought to overthrow benevolence and righteousness and sever the study of ritual. Others criticized his Dao, saying that he spoke only of stillness and emptiness, and that his teaching could not be used to govern the realm. Alas, people have misunderstood Laozi for a very long time.”

This is why Laozi has been misunderstood for centuries, and why his teachings on Dao and De have been difficult to put into practice in our own time. There are clear reasons for this. Laozi investigated the origins of Heaven and Earth and described in detail the changes from ancient times to the present. He first explained Dao and De, then discussed humaneness and righteousness, and finally pointed out the failings of ritual systems and doctrines, as well as the growing complexity of punishments and government directives. He showed that these changes had all developed gradually. Grasping the essentials and holding fast to the root, he gave priority to the fullest potential of human nature and temperament. His teaching begins with cultivating body and mind, extends to governing family and state, and ultimately concerns the whole world: it is so complete in scope. Yet those who are confused still offer a jumble of interpretations. Is this not a grave misrepresentation of Laozi?

In ancient times, Fuxi drew the Eight Trigrams (Bagua) to symbolize the myriad things, investigate the principles of nature and life, and accord with the harmony of Dao and De. Laozi, too, traced his inquiry back to what came before Heaven and Earth. Drawing on the principles of Yin-Yang, he pursued the utmost limits of nature and life and explored the depths of Dao and De. In this respect, Laozi and Fuxi shared the same source.

King Wen of Zhou observed the changing patterns of the nine and six lines in the Zhou Changes, giving prominence to strength and vigor and valuing change, while taking centrality and correctness as essential. Laozi, by contrast, examined the stable patterns of the seven and eight lines in the Zhou Changes. He advocated reaching softness and maintaining stillness, with the Great Dao running through and encompassing all things. In this respect, Laozi and King Wen were united in their fundamental purpose.

Confucius honored and expounded the way of Yao and Shun, took the precedents of Kings Wen and Wu as his standard, and guided the people through teachings of humaneness and righteousness. Laozi, too, pursued the way of Fuxi and brought together the learning of the Yellow Emperor, using Dao and De to transform the world. In this respect, Laozi and Confucius were aligned in their understanding of how to weigh and apply the Way.

Fuxi, King Wen, and Confucius: these three exemplary gentlemen were all models among the sages.

Laozi exercised the wisdom of adapting to changing circumstances. Laozi, Confucius, and Zhuangzi may all be said to have attained the highest state of sagehood. Laozi could bring changing principles into harmony and unite what was opposite; he probed the deepest pivots of change and sought where subtle principles ultimately lead. In this, he may be called supremely wondrous.

Wang Bi believed that the sage had already become one with the Dao, while Laozi had not yet truly awakened to the Great Dao. Ruan Ji called Laozi “a superior worthy, though beneath the sage,” probably following Wang Bi’s view. Did they think that Laozi’s experience in governing worldly affairs was insufficient to prove the principles he taught? That was not the case.

Alas! Sages who live in the world sometimes leave traces of their actions, and sometimes leave none. When the Great Dao cannot be put into practice, some risk danger and travel about persuading others, taking the safety of the realm as their own concern. Others conceal their names and withdraw from the world, thereby showing that worldly affairs cannot entangle them. Though leaving traces and concealing them follow different paths, both ultimately return to the same Great Dao. These are different approaches to the Way and its principles, not simply opposing positions.

Thus Confucius chose to serve in office and put the Way into practice, while Laozi chose to withdraw. Laozi remained silent, while Confucius came forward to speak. Each acted at the fitting point between advancing and retreating, concealment and visibility. How could Wang Bi and Ruan Ji fully understand the principles at work?

When Sima Qian arranged the teachings of the various schools, he placed the Daoists first. This shows that he understood what was fundamental and what was secondary. In compiling the “Table of Figures from Antiquity to the Present,” Ban Gu placed Laozi in the third rank. Perhaps Laozi’s standing could be lowered, but could his Dao be diminished along with it? Alas, Laozi’s teachings have long been slighted by people of his age, and these commentators are to blame.

Confucius once met Laozi in person. He praised Laozi’s Dao as “deep and unfathomable as a dragon” and sought his instruction on ritual. Confucius’s respect for Laozi is beyond reproach; these events are recorded in the histories and biographies. Later generations, however, could not discern their meaning, and so many different interpretations arose. Those who misunderstand Laozi have failed to trace his teachings to their source; those who criticize him have not truly grasped their deeper meaning.

Alas! Had no one written this account, the essential meaning of Laozi’s teaching might have been lost. I will therefore explain its principles fully, reveal its subtleties, and bring them clearly to light, showing how they accord with the intent of the various sages. If someone can understand Laozi’s Dao, make good use of his teachings, and guide present affairs by the principles of antiquity, governing the realm will be as easy as turning over one’s hand.

Of all those who have discussed Laozi’s teachings since antiquity, only Sima Qian came close to Laozi’s true intent. The only ruler who, in actual governance, grasped even a little of his Dao was Emperor Wen of Han. The accounts of others are merely superficial embellishments, absurd and untrue, and not worth believing.

Hun Yuan

“Hun Yuan” refers to the state before Heaven and Earth were divided and chaos was opened. It also refers to the moment when Original Qi—the primordial vital energy that forms Heaven, Earth, and all things—began to arise. Before Original Qi takes visible form, all is still and empty, beyond description. The subtlest forces respond to one another, and “True Unity,” the primordial and undivided existence, comes into being. Original Qi then flows and circulates, establishing Heaven and Earth. The power of creation unfolds, bringing all things into being and enabling them to function.

“Chaos” is empty within and formless without: vast, boundless, and immeasurable, beyond the reach of words. Ancient texts could not fully express its profound meaning, but its mysterious foundation can be glimpsed in Daoist scriptures.

From ancient times to the present, eighteen theories about the celestial sphere have been proposed. Examining their strengths and weaknesses shows that each has something to offer, yet each also has shortcomings. Theories such as the “armillary sphere” left accounts of the subject but no complete method has been handed down. The views differ among Zhuangzi’s “Free and Easy Wandering,” Wang Chong’s Lunheng, the Classic of Mountains and Seas with its study of mountains, rivers, and geography, Lie Yukou’s discussion of clear and turbid forces, the ecliptic theory from the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, Zhang Heng’s bronze armillary sphere, the Zhoubi Suanjing, and the Xuan Ye, Xin Tian, and An Tian theories. The theories of Chao Chong, Yao Xin, and others also vary, each with its own line of transmission.

Yu Xi, Yu Song, Liu Zhuo, and Ge Hong, as well as He Chengtian of the Song dynasty, Zu Geng of the Liang dynasty, and Li Chunfeng of the Tang dynasty, all wrote on the subject. The Gougu method of the Lujiang region and accounts in the Buddhist Abhidharmakośa sometimes use words to convey an idea, while others offer more speculative claims. Only the armillary sphere method establishes the boundaries and order of the celestial sphere’s two concentric circles, explains the paths of the Sun and Moon, and makes calculations of the heavens’ upper and lower regions, as well as their longitude and latitude, accurate and consistent.

Ge Zhichuan (Ge Hong) said that the armillary sphere is shaped like an egg, with the Earth like its yolk, positioned at the center of the heavens and supported by them. The heavens, in turn, rest upon Original Qi and revolve around it on the outside. The celestial sphere spans 365 and one-quarter degrees. Half lies above the surface of the Earth, while the other half passes beneath it; likewise, half of the twenty-eight lunar lodges—the divisions of the celestial regions—are hidden and half are visible. The author holds that this account accords with the profound meaning of the Shangqing scriptures and with clear evidence from celestial phenomena.

Empty Cavern

The Lord of the Dao said: Primordial Qi—the original vital energy that existed before heaven, earth, and all things came into being—moves through boundless, distant space and runs through all things as one. Half of it appears above the earth, while the other half encircles the world below. Some of the Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions—the star regions near the ecliptic as divided in ancient astronomy—are hidden, while others appear. This is a sign confirming the subtle intent transmitted by the Shangqing tradition, and it accords with the clear evidence of the mysterious celestial patterns.

◎ The Empty Cavern

The Lord of the Dao said: Primordial Qi dwells in a boundless, distant realm, dark and difficult to discern. There, the Empty Cavern comes into being. Within the Empty Cavern, the Great Nonbeing—the formless, imageless source—comes into being. The Great Nonbeing transforms, and the Three Qi emerge. Blended together and still undivided, they generate the Great Void, from which the Cavern is established. From the Cavern comes Nonbeing; from Nonbeing comes Being; from Being comes Emptiness. Through the transformations of Emptiness and Nonbeing, life arises naturally within the Void.

Among the Three Qi, the upper Qi is called Beginning, the middle Qi is called Origin, and the lower Qi is called Mystery. Mysterious Qi arises from Emptiness, Origin Qi arises from the Cavern, and Beginning Qi arises from Nonbeing. Thus, One gives rise to Two, and Two gives rise to Three. The Three Qi continue to transform and generate life until they reach the Nine Mysteries; then, returning from nine to one, they enter the true realm of the Dao.

Clear Qi rises and condenses to form heaven; turbid dregs condense to form earth. The middle Qi harmonizes them and gives rise to humanity. Once the Three Qi have divided, all things are born, each receiving its own Qi. The sun and moon shine in turn, and the Five Planets—also called the Five Luminaries—appear brightly. The Three Upper Heavens are formed from the clear Qi among the Three Qi. They lie above the highest and reach the realm of the Infinite.

The Taishi Jing (Scripture of the Great Beginning) says: Long ago, before Heaven and Earth had separated, that time was called the “Vast Source.” All things were an indistinct mass, like an egg, known as “Primal Chaos, Mysterious Yellow.” There was no light or form, no voice or sound, no origin or beginning ancestor; it was dark and profound. Within it lay Jing-Qi, real and not illusory, filling boundless space and taking shape in the void with perfect clarity.

Within the profound source, another chaotic whole came into being, also like an egg and likewise called “Primal Chaos, Mysterious Yellow.” It had no light or form, no voice or sound, no origin or beginning ancestor; it was dark and profound. Within it lay true Jing-Qi, extending everywhere without limit and taking shape in the void with perfect clarity. Then, within the profound source, a single Qi came forth.

After this single Qi had transformed into being, nine hundred ninety trillion, nine hundred ninety thousand years passed before it gave rise to three Qi. Each of the three came into being at intervals of nine hundred ninety trillion, nine hundred ninety thousand years. Together, they ultimately generated the “Supreme One,” the highest being in Daoist cosmology. After the Supreme One came into being, another nine hundred ninety trillion, nine hundred ninety thousand years passed before the “Middle Second Qi” and “Middle Third Qi” emerged. These two Qi also came into being at intervals of nine hundred ninety trillion, nine hundred ninety thousand years. The three converged to form their De (Virtue/Power) and together generated the “Mysterious Ancient One,” a Daoist divine title. After the Mysterious Ancient One came into being, another nine hundred ninety trillion, nine hundred ninety thousand years passed before the lower three Qi came forth…

Before heaven and earth took shape, nine kinds of Qi remained separate from one another, each enduring through immeasurably long ages. When the three kinds of Qi came together, their accumulated power of Dao and De gave rise to the Supreme One, the highest sacred being.

The Lingbao Jing (Scripture of Numinous Treasure) says that the One Qi divides into three kinds: Mysterious Qi, Original Qi, and Primordial Qi. These govern the Three Treasures. The Three Treasures are all revered spirits transformed from the three kinds of Qi, a process called “giving birth to the three Qi.” When their three names unite, they give rise to the nine Qi. The nine Qi existed before the expanse of space took shape, concealed within the Void. They had no light or appearance, no form or name, no color or beginning, and no sound. They set Qi in motion and governed the world, establishing the deep and wondrous order of heaven and earth. Their three colors of Qi mingled within the primordial chaos, appearing at times and disappearing at others.

As the movement of Qi progressed and change reached its utmost point, the three kinds of Qi began to shine forth. The clear, light Qi rose and became pure, gathering Yang Qi to form heaven. The dense, heavy Qi congealed, settled, and formed earth. The nine Qi each took their place; from them came the sun, moon, and stars, Yin-Yang, the Five Phases, and all people and things, which also received life. No change between heaven and earth could occur without being brought forth by the three kinds of Qi and guided by the nine Qi. The three kinds of Qi are the fundamental sacred source of heaven and earth, while the nine Qi are the foundation of all things. Thus, the power arising from the union of the three kinds of Qi is the root of heaven and earth’s creation.

Hundong (the primordial state in which heaven and earth had not yet separated and all things remained merged together)

The Taizhen Code says: Before primordial chaos had taken shape, the Dao’s vital energy had not yet appeared. Amid dimness and obscurity, there first existed the Venerable One Without Form or Image, meaning that neither form nor image could be discerned. After another kalpa—a vast span of cosmic time—there appeared the Venerable One Without a Name: although visible in form and substance, he could not be called by any name. After yet another kalpa, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning came into being. He had both a name and a material form; he was the beginning of all things and the source of the Supreme Dao, arising upright and transformed from nature itself.

The lifespan of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning cannot be reckoned in countless millions. Unbounded by beginning or end, it extends on forever. When dispersed, he becomes Qi; when Qi gathers and congeals, he becomes human. He can be described simply as neither “nonbeing” nor “being”; he is neither concrete form and color nor empty space. In the upper realm, he is the origin of the myriad heavens; in the middle realm, the basis of the transformations of all things; in the lower realm, the sovereign revered by all the emperors. He has no name that can be stated precisely; he is called, by necessity, the Dao.

The Scripture of the Orthodox Method of the Three Heavens of Highest Clarity says: Heaven has twelve governing cords, and Earth has twelve governing cords. The cords of Heaven…

The heavens complete one cycle in 360 revolutions, while the Earth completes one measure in 330 turns. When the heavens have made 3,600 cycles, this is called “Yang Surge”; when the Earth has turned 3,300 times, it is called “Yin Erosion.” When the Qi of Heaven reaches Great Yin and the Qi of Earth reaches Great Yang, they have reached their extremes. When Yang Qi is stirred violently, a “surge” occurs; when Yin Qi moves out of order, “erosion” occurs. As surges and erosions alternate between Yin and Yang, the Qi of Heaven and Earth reverses. This reversal of the Qi of Heaven and Earth is called a “minor kalpa.”

When a minor kalpa arrives, the myriad emperors change their positions, the Nine Qi alter the order of their movements, and the courses of the sun and moon contract. The land connects with the Nine Springs; the water mothers burst through the Five Rivers; great birds gather at Dragon Gate; and the Five Emperors assemble at Dark Capital. At this time, evil and defiled beings are destroyed, while the good people are allowed to survive.

When the heavens have made 9,900 cycles, this is called “Yang Erosion”; when the Earth has turned 9,300 times, it is called “Yin Surge.” During Yang Erosion, the Qi of Heaven reaches Great Yin and is exhausted; during Yin Surge, the Qi of Earth reaches Great Yang and reaches its extreme. Thus, when Yin Qi moves out of order, erosion occurs, and when Yang Qi is stirred violently, surge occurs. When Yin and Yang undergo erosion and surge, Heaven and Earth are transformed. This transformation of Heaven and Earth is called a “great kalpa.”

When a great kalpa arrives, Heaven and Earth overturn. Rivers and seas swell and burst their banks; people sink beneath the waters, mountains are submerged, and even gold and jade melt away. The four quarters of Heaven and Earth fall into darkness and chaos. White corpses drift across boundless waters, while solitary spirits cry out mournfully amid the flood waves. Great birds cleanse the filth at numinous mountains; the water mothers receive their charge at the Nine Rivers; and the Five Dragons exhale Qi at the Northern Origin. Heavenly steeds, harnessed with black reins, drive out evil spirits; red chains subdue demons at the Gate of Chen. Jupiter destroys the aura of kingship at Golden Net; dark clouds veil the sun and moon at the Hall of Three Eminences; and the Five Qi gather at the summit of the Nine Ridges. The Dragon King stirs the radiant Qi at the Northern Origin, north of the Eastern Well; the River Lord receives his summons beneath the Nine Seas; the sage ruler’s carriage appears at the Hall of Bright Clouds; and the Five Emperors examine and distinguish good from evil.

At this time, all evil is ended and demons vanish. In the remote wilderness of the eight directions and at the bounds of the four extremes, scarcely anyone escapes. When the kalpa of Heaven and Earth descends, only the power of the High Gods of the Three Heavens can avert and dispel the disaster. Only those who possess the Blue Register and White Certificate—credentials bestowed by Daoism, such as talismans and registers of names—can escape the calamity.

It is also said: The Celestial Gate, the pivot of the heavenly realm’s movements, lies in the northwest corner of heaven, opposite the Northern Dipper. The nine stars of the Northern Dipper are the guiding framework and axle of the Celestial Gate, as well as the radiance of the jeweled canopy of Yuchen, the Daoist heavenly realm. They govern the Qi of the nine Brahma heavens and the twelve temporal divisions. As the Dipper’s handle turns the Celestial Gate, all nine heavens move together.

Heaven has four gates through which the seasons alternate, and the nine heavens together have thirty-six seasonal periods. In one day and night, the Dipper’s handle passes through one gate of the seasons; over thirty-six days and nights, it completes all thirty-six periods. This is one full cycle of the nine heavens. Three hundred and sixty such cycles make up one complete circuit of the nine heavens. When that circuit ends, the Qi of the six heavens returns to the upper three heavens. The three heavens then revolve anew, bringing about their convergence and setting the measures of movement in motion.

Three thousand six hundred circuits form a minor kalpa. At the transition between minor kalpas, the nine Qi are reordered, the myriad emperors change their positions, the people perish, and the ghostly beings disperse. Benevolent customs are restored, and the four quarters of Heaven and Earth return to peace and unity. Nine thousand nine hundred circuits mark the end of a major kalpa. At its end, the allotment of Qi in the nine heavens is exhausted, and the fortunes of the six heavens reach their limit. When those fortunes are spent, Qi surges between the Three and the Five. All manner of demons and violent forces run rampant, seizing the moment to stir up disorder and spread harm, bringing disaster upon the people. This is what happens when the cycles reach their end and evil beings rise in the opportunity they find.

The Earthly Pivot, the underground hub of numinous Qi, lies in the southeast, beneath the Nine Springs—that is, at the mouths of nine rivers. It exhales and draws in numinous energy, linking upward to the waters flowing from the Source of Heaven and, to either side, taking in the pools deep within the Nine Caverns.

If one calculates the four convergences of the waters according to the twelve double-hours, the waters circle eastward for one day and night, and Qi then fills and gathers. After the pivot of the Nine Rivers has moved day and night for thirty-three days, it turns northwest and returns to its outlet. It continues to exhale and draw in numinous energy, linking upward to the waters flowing from the Source of Heaven and, to either side, taking in the pools deep within the Nine Caverns.

According to the twelve double-hours, the waters from the four confluences flow back east for one day and one night, as their vital energy gradually swells and gathers. One full cycle in the movement of the nine rivers’ currents takes thirty-three days and nights: the water mechanism turns northwest, flows back northeast, spreads toward the southwest, then contracts toward the southeast. As it spreads, the water level rises; as it contracts, the level falls. When the current has coursed through all four confluence regions and the water from the Heavenly Source has run down and through them, this counts as one revolution.

Three hundred and thirty revolutions make one degree. After one degree has run its course, the Water Mother brings the currents together, and the Dragon King, the River Lords, and other water-realm deities are consequently invested with titles in the Three Heavens, the Daoist celestial realm. Three thousand three hundred degrees are called “Yin Stagnation,” the stage when the Yin cycle is blocked. When the Yin cycle is blocked, erosion follows. At such times the waters surge, rivers burst their banks, mountains sink, and the land is submerged. Nine thousand three hundred degrees mark the end of the great calamity and the moment when the Yin cycle reaches its limit. Then the waters of the Nine Springs pour into the floodwaters, and the Water Mother stirs the currents at Dragon Gate. Mountains and seas merge into one, leaving the world flat and level. This is the scene brought about when the Yin cycle is full and the Earth’s Qi surges.

It is also said: At noon on the seventh day of the seventh month, on the Bingwu day of the first year of Chikaihuang, the Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning ascended to the Moon-Rising Pavilion in the City of Linlang. There he received the talismanic mandate and opened the Jade Coffer of Golden Yang. The Jade Maiden Xuanhe spoke these words herself and brought out the Register of the Imperial People.

From before Kaihuang, when the Three Forms first became manifest, through the Kaihuang era, countless eons passed. Heaven and earth came into being and declined again and again, too often to record one by one. During the Kaihuang era, the Elder of the Nine Heavens, a revered deity of the celestial realm, established the Primordial Beginning calendar and examined and calculated the cycles of calamity and fortune. Drawing on the White Slips and Green Registers, celestial documents listing those who had attained the Dao, he entered their names in the Register of the Imperial People. Their number reached its limit in the time of Tang Yao. This marked the turning point of a minor cycle of calamity. Some names were added and others removed; among them, 240,000 people were destined to attain the Dao.

Since the Tang dynasty, after forty-six Dinghai years, the intervening Jiashen year marks the meeting of a minor calamity cycle and the reexamination of the registers. At that time the Yang Nine and Yin Six calamities, signs of disaster, will arrive. The two Qi of Yin-Yang will separate and reunite, and good and ill fortune will converge. Only those who pass through this calamity will receive special exemption from disaster.

After the Jiashen year, beginning with the Renchen year and passing through nine cycles, the signs of good and ill fortune will appear by the Gengzi year, and the manifestations of the Dao will become clear. Then a red star will appear in the east, while a white comet crosses the Moon Gate. The wicked will form factions, crowding together like swarms of insects, and bodies will cover the Yue River region. People will eat their own kind, and for ten thousand li no cooking smoke will rise. Powerful ministers will seize control, while weak rulers flee in disgrace. After this, the auspicious signs of the Five Spirits will appear and restore accord with the source. Following the Dragon Essence, a new ruler will carry on the lineage and pacify threats from beyond the four quarters. Those aligned with Heaven’s mandate will flourish. After the age of the Dragon and Tiger, only after the Three-Six will the realm be at peace; the people will no longer suffer violent deaths, and the fortunes of the state will no longer be in peril.

The forty-six Dinghai years since the Tang dynasty make up one cycle of three calamities. After a further fifty-five Dinghai years, around the Renchen and Guisi years, comes the cycle of the great calamity. Then heaven and earth will turn upside down: gold and jade will crumble into dust, people will sink, mountains will collapse, and the four quarters of heaven and earth will sink into darkness and chaos.

The changing cycles of heaven and earth are beyond the control of ordinary people. Only those who dwell in the lofty Three Heavens and whose names appear in the White Slips and Green Registers can spread their wings in safety, ascend through the clouds on beams of light, and gaze into the distance. These teachings, spoken by the Jade Maiden Xuanhe herself and preserved in the Jade Coffer of Golden Yang, concern the rise and decline of heaven and earth and the signs of good and ill fortune.

The Scripture of the Eight Radiances and Flying Transmissions of Shangqing, one of the classic texts of the Shangqing school, says: “When a Great Kalpa—the completion of one long cycle in the universe’s turning—is about to end, the Three Dao undergo changes of increase and decrease, and the eyes and ears are affected as well.” This teaching, orally transmitted by the Mysterious Harmony Jade Maiden and recorded in the Golden Casket of Jade, discusses the formation and decline of Heaven and Earth, as well as signs of good and ill fortune.

The Scripture of the Eight Radiances and Flying Transmissions of Shangqing also says: “When a Great Kalpa is about to end, the Three Dao undergo changes of increase and decrease, and the two Qi of Yin and Yang gather and separate. The ordering and transformation of all things each follow their appointed cycles. In the era of Cheng Tang, the calamity of Yangjiu descended: violent and rebellious people were cut down, while True Immortals were sought out and summoned.”

The Admonitions of Lord Lao says: “To the west, among the countless lands within the flowing sands, there is a huge stone two hundred zhang tall and fifteen hundred li around. North of it stands a city as small as a mustard seed, its walls measuring forty li on each side, with stone terraces twenty zhang high all around. Each year, flying immortals bring one mustard seed and place it in the city. They then brush the huge stone with their garments, gradually wearing it away until it is level with the ground. When the mustard seeds have filled the entire city, the cycle of time will have completed a Great Kalpa, and the world will enter a new age.”

The Lingbao Scripture of Ritual Precepts and Ceremonial Procedures, in its second volume, says: “The huge stone is as large as Mount Kunlun, and the mustard seeds fill a city forty li across. People in Heaven brush the stone once every hundred years with their sleeves, until it has been completely worn away. Then take one mustard seed as a measure: the time this takes is equal to the end of one Great Kalpa. How long these years are—and who can grasp the principle behind them?”

The Lingbao Scripture on the Cycles of Heaven and Earth says: “In the course of Lingbao’s natural cycles, there are Great Yangjiu and Great Bailiu, as well as Lesser Yangjiu and Lesser Bailiu. Three thousand three hundred years are like the end of a Great Kalpa. Such a span of time is immense—and who can grasp the principle behind it?”

The Lingbao Scripture on the Cycles of Heaven and Earth also says: “In the course of Lingbao’s natural cycles, there are Great Yangjiu and Great Bailiu, as well as Lesser Yangjiu and Lesser Bailiu. Every three thousand three hundred years marks one Lesser Yangjiu and Lesser Bailiu; every nine thousand nine hundred years marks one Great Yangjiu and Great Bailiu. A calamity in the timing of Heaven is called ‘Yangjiu,’ while a decline in the fortune of Earth is called ‘Bailiu.’ In the Jia-Shen year after the time of the Golden Heaven clan, the cycles of Heaven and Earth reached the turning point where decline gives way to renewal, and the calamities of Yangjiu and Bailiu converged. At that time, the Dao of Dao and De would become manifest again, evil and rebellious people would suddenly rise, and a wise ruler would receive the mandate in the Ren-Chen year.”

It is said that before Heaven and Earth took shape, beyond the Great Purity (Taiqing, the Daoist realm of pure emptiness), there existed an immeasurably vast expanse. Within that emptiness was utter stillness and silence, without bounds: there was no Heaven or Earth, no Yin or Yang; no sun or moon, no light; no north, south, east, or west, no colors such as blue-green or yellow; no softness or strength, no covering or bearing, no destruction or preservation; no worthy people or sages, no loyalty or kindness; no coming or going, life or death, before or after, round or square.

Within it were hundreds of millions of transformations, vast and boundless, yet without form or image. It existed in a state of natural emptiness and stillness, deep, mysterious, and subtle. To investigate it was to face something without end; it had no bounds, no high or low, rank or partiality, left or right. Only the Lord Lao (Laojun, revered in Daoism as the Most High Lord Lao) remained within this realm of empty stillness and mystery. He could not be seen or heard. To say he existed was to say he had no visible form; to say he did not exist was to ignore that all things were born from him.

Beyond the eight directions, all things began gradually to divide. Subtle layers took shape below, forming the world, and the Great Origin (Hongyuan, the primordial Qi or the first age of the cosmos) came into being. Even in the time of the Great Origin, there was still no Heaven.

Before Heaven and Earth—that is, the cosmos—had taken shape, emptiness and the myriad things had not yet separated, and clear Qi and turbid Qi were not yet distinct. In a mysterious, still, and empty state, the vast primordial Qi, called Hongyuan, moved as one through countless kalpas, or immensely long stretches of time. After Hongyuan divided, Hundun emerged: a stage in which Heaven and Earth remained undivided and the myriad things were blended together. Long ages passed until the Hundred Formations. After that came another 810,000 years before Taichu, the stage when Heaven and Earth began to take shape.

At the time of Taichu, Lao Jun descended from emptiness and became its teacher. From his mouth he recited a scripture called the Scripture of Opening Heaven, consisting of 480,000 volumes, each containing 480,000 characters. Each character opened up a space extending a hundred li. Lao Jun used this scripture to teach Taichu for 810,000 years.

Taichu then began to distinguish the clear Qi from the turbid Qi between Heaven and Earth, to cleave apart the undivided chaos, and to give form to the myriad things. He established the directions of north and south, east and west, brought light into the darkness, and let it shine in all four directions. The distinctions between above and below, inside and outside, surface and interior, long and short, coarse and fine, female and male, black and white, large and small, and exalted and humble were also established at this time. The scripture describes the world before this as like a person walking at night, surrounded by chaos and unable to make things out.

After Taichu received Lao Jun’s Scripture of Opening Heaven, clear and turbid Qi separated between Heaven and Earth: clear Qi rose to become Heaven, while turbid Qi sank to become Earth. The Three Bonds—the basic principles that uphold cosmic order—were established, and Heaven and Earth began to take shape, though the sun and moon did not yet exist. Heaven was to bring forth the myriad things, but had no light to work with. So the sun and moon were set in place to illuminate the dark.

Although the sun and moon already existed, there were still no human beings. Later, humans gradually began to appear: drawing the essence of Heaven from above and the essence of Earth from below, then blending these with the Qi between Heaven and Earth to form a spirit. This was called a “human.” Once Heaven and Earth had taken shape, the myriad things also began to appear. Every kind of life and every formed thing received its own Qi and came into being. Some were generated from Pu Qi, the simple and dense primordial Qi—for example, rocks and mountains…